The offered baseball was struck by Alex Rodriguez for his 500th career home run on August 4th, 2007 at Yankee Stadium off Kansas City Royals pitcher Kyle Davies, making ARod the youngest player in major league history to reach the 500 home run plateau and the 22nd player to reach one of baseball’s most revered milestones.
ARod stepped to the plate on a sunny afternoon in the Bronx in the summer of ‘07 after an anxiety filled eight day, 28 at-bat homerless drought since homer no. 499 was recorded. He slugged the first pitch he saw from Davies into the left-field seats for a three-run homer. The soaring ball fell into a pack of frenzied Yankees fans where it was recovered by a New York area college student. Rodriguez raised his hands in the air amidst a deafening roar that filled Yankee Stadium. He accepted congratulations from first-base coach Tony Pena before clapping and grinning as he rounded the bases, while, in the stadium audio booth, the theme from "The Natural" was cued. When he reached the plate, he hugged Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu, who both scored on the landmark home run, and blew a kiss toward the stands. His teammates were already on the field and he embraced several of them on his way back to the bench. The crowd roared again when moments later A-Rod stuck his head out of the dugout for a long-awaited curtain call.
For Rodriguez, the conclusion of his personal quest for 500 came with equal parts celebration and relief. "The energy of the fans just put it in perspective a little bit," Rodriguez said. "For me, I wanted to do it at home." The All-Star third baseman became the third player to hit 500 as a Yankee and the second to do it in Yankee Stadium. Babe Ruth did it at Cleveland on Aug. 11, 1929, and Mickey Mantle reached the mark at home against Baltimore on May 14, 1967. The ball represents one of the most historic home runs ever hit in “The House That Ruth Built”, a stadium that was said to have been built as a shrine to the long ball. After ARod’s historic feat, he said of his 500th home run baseball and the fan who caught it, "I really want it back. But if not, I congratulate him for catching it. Nice catch." His batting helmet from the at-bat was sent immediately to the Hall of Fame.
The official Major League ball was pre marked by MLB in anticipation of the historic event with a special identification code “A 107” around the MLB logo at the top of the bottom panel. After the home run, the ball was tagged by MLB with a hologram bearing an exclusive serial number that corresponds to the MLB database. The ball shows appropriate usage wear and has been carefully preserved by the lucky fan who caught this piece of history off the bat of ARod on August 4th, 2007 at Yankee Stadium. We are honored that this individual chose SCP Auctions to offer the ball at auction on his behalf. SCP Auctions successful history of selling significant home run balls includes the sale of Barry Bonds record-breaking 756th home run ball for $752,467, and Bonds' record-tying 755 home run ball for $186,750 in 2007. Given the prolific rate at which ARod has continued to hit home runs, his 500th clout will likely become a more significant milestone should he reach the ultimate destination of breaking Bonds’ all-time record. A detailed letter or provenance from the consignor is included.