As Shohei Ohtani closes in on the first 50-50 season in baseball history, prospectors have started to pick their seats in the outfield for the Dodgers' remaining games, hoping to catch a milestone home run ball.
With 11 games left in Los Angeles' season, Ohtani has 48 homers and 48 steals.
After two games in Miami, there's a six-game homestand in L.A., before the Dodgers play their final three games in Colorado.
So, how much will the ball be worth if it lands in the stands?
Ken Goldin of Goldin Auctions, whose company sold Aaron Judge's American League-record 62nd home run ball for $1.5 million in 2022, estimates Ohtani's record ball, as well as his bat, would be valued at $250,000 each.
"This accomplishment will cement his place in history as a one-of-a-kind talent," Goldin said. "His items are in exceptionally high demand throughout the world, due to his universal appeal."
Another expert places the value even higher.
"It has never been done before, so I'd say it's $250,000 with my eyes closed," added Harlan Werner, a longtime L.A.-based memorabilia dealer and agent. "But I've seen the money being spent on him here, and I wouldn't be surprised if a ball got to $500,000."
So, where will the homer likely land?
With Dodger Stadium being the likely destination now, let's look at Ohtani's 48 home runs. He has hit roughly half in stadiums around the country to right field, roughly a third to left-center field and the final 20 percent to center field, where there aren't any seats in Chavez Ravine.
If Ohtani hits his 50th homer before his 50th steal, the person who catches it, will be rooting for his 50th stolen base, as one without the other will significantly reduce the appeal.
Major League Baseball confirmed to cllct the league has a plan in place for Ohtani's potential 50th homer.
In most games during the season, there is no way to authenticate home runs. If a ball leaves the field for any reason, whether it be a home run, foul ball, errant throw, etc., it can't be authenticated because it left the line of sight of MLB authenticators.
But for special milestones, the league takes extra action.
Baseballs for Ohtani's at-bats will be covertly marked, similarly to the process used when Judge set the AL mark in 2022. These balls will also be produced by the umpires in specific sequences during his at-bats.
The reason this can't be done at every game is simply the process of marking and sequencing every baseball. Fans might notice Ohtani at-bats might take a touch longer than other batters, because umpires need to ensure the right baseballs are being used.
The record price paid for an Ohtani collectible is the $276,000 paid for signed his 2018 Chrome Red Refractor in a PSA 9, which sold once in 2022 and once in 2023 for the same price at PWCC.
The record price paid for any Ohtani game-used jersey is $228,600 for the jersey from his first grand slam, which Sotheby's sold in February 2023.
The most valuable ball that landed in the Dodger Stadium stands came 36 years ago, when a gimpy Kirk Gibson hit his dramatic pinch-hit homer to win Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. That ball have never publicly surfaced. Gibson's bat from the game sold for $575,912, and his jersey sold for $303,277 at SCP Auctions in 2010.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectible market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.
Matt Liberman is a reporter and video producer for cllct.