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Pete Rose's record-breaking ball fetches $403,000

CINCINNATI (AP) The baseball Pete Rose swatted to left-center field for his record-setting 4,192th hit has sold at auction for more than $403,000.

The auction site Lelands.com reports that the ball sold Saturday for $403,657.20. Rose's single off San Diego's Eric Show on Sept. 11, 1985, at Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium broke Ty Cobb's hits record.

Lelands didn't say who bought the ball, which came with documentation including copies of a notarized letter signed by Rose and a letter from the collector who first bought it from Rose.

Lelands said the ball initially was sold in 1987, becoming the first piece of sports memorabilia to fetch six figures.

Rose was banned from baseball and remains ineligible for the Hall of Fame for betting on Reds games when he managed the team.

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