There were many factors that led to the Los Angeles Dodgers defeating the New York Yankees to win the 2024 World Series, including Aaron Judge inexplicably dropping a routine fly ball during Game 5.
On Thursday, that ball sold via an MLB auction for $43,510. Purchased by an unknown buyer, all proceeds from the auction will go to the Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation.
Judge’s dropped fly ball represented a monumental shift in Game 5 because up until that point in the fifth inning, the Dodgers trailed 5-0. Judge’s miscue was followed by a bounced throw to third base in an attempted force out by Anthony Volpe, and lastly, Gerrit Cole failing to cover first base on a would-be inning ending play.
With a run on the board, Freddie Freeman drove in two more runs, and Teoscar Hernández smoked a game-tying, two-run double. The Dodgers went on to take the lead and were eventually crowned World Series champions.
The Judge fly ball being the starting point of the Yankees’ collapse capped a reverse storybook year. He blazed through the regular season with eventual American League MVP honors, only to have a historically bad postseason at the plate.
Moreover, Judge’s error in the World Series embodied the lack of fundamentals many around the sport noted when analyzing the Yankees’ style of play, and how the Dodgers capitalized during their comeback inning. When Los Angeles was tasked with making a key throw, or being in the right spot defensively, their preparation was met with proper execution.
Aaron Judge dropped fly ball value pales in comparison
Judge’s fly ball is a piece of World Series history because it marks a major turning point, but in comparison to Freeman’s walk-off grand slam in Game 1, the latter trounces in value.
Freeman’s grand slam ball is currently up to $650,000 with bidding ending on Saturday.
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