Aaron Judge made history Wednesday night, tying Roger Maris’ single-season American League record with his 61st home run.
The New York Yankees slugger took Toronto Blue Jays southpaw Tim Mayza deep in the seventh inning. Judge’s home-run ball could have provided a souvenir of a lifetime for a fan lucky enough to catch it at the Rogers Centre.
Nobody did, but a few came painfully close.
As illuminated by a fan-captured video, fans in the front row of left field’s bleachers lunged out with their gloves. However, the ball fell short of their reach.
ESPN’s Marly Rivera showed the memento landing in the Blue Jays’ bullpen. Coach Matt Buschmann retrieved the ball.
A fan could have sold that ball for a fortune or traded it back to Judge for a bunch of signed memorabilia. But one would assume the Blue Jays will give Judge the prized possession without a negotiation.
It stinks that no fan won the jackpot by catching Judge’s 61st home run, but at least Zack Hample didn’t get it.