Catching a home run ball in a game is a special moment. Catching the iconic ball is like winning the lottery. Amber Roman, an avid fan, was lucky enough to get her hands on Shohei Ohtani’s first home run as a Dodgers player. The ball is estimated to be worth $100,000, but he was allegedly swarmed by security, isolated from his husband, and pressured to give up the ball. Almost nothing.
That’s the centerpiece of a new report from The Athletic that outlines what happened Wednesday night when Ohtani’s first pitch landed at Roman’s feet. The woman and her husband, Alexis Valenzuela, had no intention of blackmailing Ohtani to make money outside of the ball. They say they were always happy to get the ball back to the Dodgers star, but how the team’s security acted against them was insane.
According to the couple, as soon as they realized Roman had the ball, they were removed from their seats and swarmed by security to try to get the ball from Ohtani. This is not unusual, as teams regularly send security guards to handle exchanges of notable memorabilia like Ohtani’s ball. This usually involves fans giving up a piece of history in exchange for a hefty sum of merchandise, usually a meet-and-greet with the player in question.
This is a deal that allows players to protect special memories from their careers and gives fans an experience they will never forget.
However, it was different when it came to Ohtani’s ball. Team representatives reportedly opened with a surprisingly low-budget offer of two autographed ball caps, then physically prevented Roman from telling her husband about the offer. . The woman asked if the team had anything more to offer, and a team representative said that if the two decided to leave Dodger Stadium, the team would certify the authenticity of the ball and sell it on the secondary market. He claims that he yelled that it would effectively destroy the value of the ball.
Feeling pressured to accept the team’s offer, Roman ultimately walked away with two autographed hats, an autographed ball and an autographed bat from Ohtani, but never met him. Estimated value of their catch: $5,000. It’s not nothing, but it’s a far cry from the $100,000 the ball would have fetched at auction.
Still, Roman and Valenzuela say it wasn’t really about the money.
“We’re not trying to extort anyone. It’s not like we’re hungry for money,” Valenzuela said. “It’s just a special moment and a special ball. But I think it’s only fair that it should be rewarded equally.”
“I was just disappointed that a team that I care so much about made such a simple, unquoteable accusation against us.”
The Dodgers told The Athletic they are open to further discussions with fans about the deal, but that’s not the point here. Winning the ball more is the lowest hurdle the team can clear here. This is a multi-billion dollar organization that can afford to sacrifice more for Ball.
The big question is implementing protocols designed to avoid low balls and pressure on fans with items like Ohtani’s ball. Instead of celebrating the moment and fostering friendships, the security guards somehow end up doing whatever it takes to get the items, even if it means separating the couple like a police interrogation. are instructed to do so.
Assuming everything happens the way Roman and Valenzuela said, this is a habit that needs to change, and it requires more than two hats, a ball, and a bat.
