“However, shortly after [Matus] obtained possession, Defendant Belanski wrapped his legs around Max’s arm and used his hands to wrangle the ball out of Max’s hand, stealing the ball for himself,” the lawsuit alleges. “This interaction between Max and Defendant Belanski was captured on video by multiple fans who were at the game.”
A high school student has filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent the sale of Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball, which is scheduled to go up for auction on Friday with a starting bid of $500,000.
According to The Los Angeles Times, the complaint was filed on behalf of 18-year-old Max Matus of Broward County, Florida. Matus, a high school senior, said that he is the rightful owner of the ball hit by Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani on September 19.
“Matus has suffered irreparable harm because of the nature of the unique, irreplaceable 50/50 Ball,” the lawsuit alleges. “Ohtani is currently the best baseball player in the country, and this ball represents a new record established by Ohtani. As a result, there is no adequate remedy at law that can replace this unique and extraordinary 50/50 Ball. Max is entitled to injunctive relief to preserve the status quo by enjoining the 50/50 Ball from being sold or altered to prevent irreparable injury.”
Ohtani made national headlines—and baseball history—during the Dodgers’ game against the Maimi Marlins, becoming the first-ever player to join the “50/50 Club” by hitting 50 home runs and stealing 50 bases in a single season.
Matus is now seeking an injunction preventing the three defendants—Goldin Auctions LLC, and Florida residents Chris Belanski and Kelvin Ramirez—from “transferring, encumbering, selling, or concealing the 50/50 ball.” He is also seeking actual and compensatory damages.
Attorneys for Matus say that their client was attending the game on his 18th birthday with his father. They were in the left-center field stands when Ohtani’s home run cleared the wall, giving Matus the chance to “firmly grab the ball in his left hand, successfully obtaining possession of the 50/50 ball.”
“However, shortly after [Matus] obtained possession, Defendant Belanski wrapped his legs around Max’s arm and used his hands to wrangle the ball out of Max’s hand, stealing the ball for himself,” the lawsuit alleges. “This interaction between Max and Defendant Belanski was captured on video by multiple fans who were at the game.”
[note: footage of the incident shows an individual matching Matus’ description trying, and failing, to catch Ohtani’s home rune ball, which bounced over a table and landed underneath it. Matus then struggled with multiple other fans to claim possession of the ball.]
Greg Matus, the plaintiff’s father, had earlier told the Times that the interaction between Matus and his fellow fans was “awkward.”
“I’m actually glad my son didn’t get hurt,” the 18-year-old’s father told The Los Angeles Times. “He ended up with is hand between the guy’s legs, which is one of the most awkward things I’ve ever seen. […] Maybe that guy was a big Dodgers fan and he was trying to get the ball. I don’t know what his motivation was, but it was a little crazy.”
A spokesperson for Goldin Auction has since said that the company plans to proceed with the sale.
“Having reviewed the allegations and images included in the lawsuit, and publicly available video from the game, Goldin plans to go live with the auction of the Ohtani 50/50 ball,” the company said in a statement.
Although the lawsuit remains pending, a Florida court has given Goldin Auction the green light to proceed with its planned auction—provided, however, that “Defendants [do] not sell, conceal, or transfer the 50/50 Ball pending the Court’s ruling on Plaintiffs’ Motion.”
Sources
Fan claiming ownership of Shohei Ohtani’s 50-50 home run ball files lawsuit to stop auction
Teen says Shohei Ohtani’s 50th home run ball was stolen from him. He files lawsuit to stop auction
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