Fan who caught Aaron Judge 62nd home run ball cost himself a ton of money

You often hear these days about people who bet on themselves and see their faith pay off in big ways. But you don’t often hear about the ones who do bet on themselves, only to see the decision backfire.

In the case of Cory Youmans, his gamble could not have gone worse.

Youmans is the fan who caught Aaron Judge’s 62nd home run ball during an October 4 game between the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers in Arlington.

Youmans declined to give the ball to Judge and instead kept it so he could sell it. In November, Youmans’ attorney said that they had turned down a $3 million offer for the ball. They decided to sell the ball via an online auction, thinking it would go for more money.

What a mistake that was.

The auction for the 62nd home run ball ended on Saturday evening. The ball, which was sold through Goldin, received six bids. The winning bid was $1.25 million. With the $250,000 buyer’s premium, the total price was $1.5 million.

If what the attorney said was true, then that means Youmans cost himself $1.5 million with his decision. What a blunder.

Youmans’ attorney reasoned at the time that the bidding could get crazy considering how many passionate Yankees fans there are out there. He severely overestimated just how important fans regarded the ball commemorating the 7th-most home runs hit in a single season.