Blue Jays Fan Misses Catching Aaron Judge’s 61st Homer By Inches

Baseball memorabilia can be a hot ticket item at auctions, so as the days mounted and Aaron Judge’s chase to catch (and eventually pass) Roger Maris for the American League’s all-time home run record continued to stall, interest mounted as to which lucky fan would end up with the prized ball.

In the end, the souvenir went to nobody.

Judge’s historic blast—which he hit during the seventh inning of Wednesday night’s game against the Blue Jays—fell inches short of the front row of the left field stands at Rogers Centre, leading to plenty of stunned reactions from the fans nearby.

So close, yet so far away.

Earlier in the day, sports betting site Odds Shark set an over/under line for the eventual auction price of Judge’s 62nd home run ball, which obviously has yet to be hit yet, at $2.5 million. The 61st ball certainly wouldn’t have fetched as big a price, but it definitely would have been worth a pretty penny for whichever fan was fortunate enough to come away with it.

As they say, though, one man’s misery is another’s fortune. The Yankees will head home on Friday to face the Orioles, where Judge will look to pass Maris and become the sole owner of the AL’s single-season record. Perhaps he’ll clear the bullpen next time.

• Inside The Pinstripes: Anthony Rizzo Assisting Yankees Manager Aaron Boone on Wednesday 

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