Camden Co. Auction House Sells Shohei Ohtani Ball For Record $4.4M

RUNNEMEDE, NJ — A Camden County auction house just made history, selling Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani's 50th home run ball Tuesday for a record-breaking total.

Goldin, an online marketplace based in Runnemede, received 40 bids for the ball that made Ohtani the first player in MLB history to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. The winner will pay $4.392 million, shattering the record for the most expensive baseball ever sold at auction.

The purchase includes a winning bid of $3.6 million, plus a 22 percent buyer's premium. Mark McGwire's 70th home run ball yielded the prior record, selling for $3.005 million, which includes the buyer's premium.

Bidding for Ohtani's ball began Sept. 27 and closed Tuesday night. Goldin received eight bids during the auction's final hour, increasing the leading total by $900,000.

Ohtani hit his 50th home run against the Miami Marlins, making him the first player in MLB history to join the single-season 50/50 club. He finished the regular season with 54 home runs — best in the National League — and 59 stolen bags.

The Dodgers will face the New York Yankees in the World Series, which begins Friday.

Litigation over the ball's true owner continues. Christian Zacek went home with the ball after grabbing it from the left-field stands at Miami's LoanDepot Park. But two other fans — Max Matus and Joseph Davidov — claimed in separate lawsuits that they had it first.

All parties involved in the lawsuits agreed that the auction should proceed. But currently, Goldin is contracted to sell the ball with Zacek, according to the Associated Press.

Goldin was founded by Ken Goldin, a Cherry Hill native who has made a fortune off buying and selling sports, history and pop culture memorabilia. The business serves as a marketplace for trading cards and other collectables.

Ken Goldin is the star of "King of Collectibes: The Goldin Touch," a Netflix program that follows him and his crew as they uncover and sell rare memorabilia.