Fan who caught No. 756 putting ball up for auction

[bigboydan]

Does this one really shock anyone here.

I can't blame this guy for selling it at all really. The problem is that he probably won't get as much as he should though based on the situation surrounding the record.

BTW... Hey Taco, Will you be bidding on this one.

Fan wants to keep Bonds' No. 756 but doesn't 'have the bank account'

SAN FRANCISCO -- No. 756 is going to auction.

Barry Bonds' record-breaking home run ball will be sold online, and fortunate fan Matt Murphy figures to be a half-million dollars richer.

The 21-year-old New York man said Tuesday he had no choice but to sell the ball -- several people told him he would be taxed on the souvenir just for holding on to it.

"It wasn't hard. It was simple math. I'm upset by the decision I had to make," Murphy said. "I wanted to keep it. I'm young. I don't have the bank account. ... It would have cost me a lot more to keep it."

Bonds broke Hank Aaron's record of 755 with a shot into the right-field seats on Aug. 7 against the Washington Nationals.

Sotheby's/SCP Auctions will handle the sale at www.scpauctions.com beginning Aug. 28 and going through Sept. 15. The starting bid has not been determined, but auction officials estimated the ball would bring at least $500,000.

"This is the most historic baseball ever to be sold," said David Kohler, president of SCP Auctions.

The ball from Bonds' 755th home run hit Aug. 4 in San Diego also will be for sale on the site. The same company sold the balls from Bonds' 700th homer and No. 715 that passed Babe Ruth for second place last season.

Everyone involved hopes the buyer of the historic balls is willing to at least share them for a period of time -- if not donate them altogether -- with the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

"I really hope the person who does buy it is in position to loan it," Murphy said, a security guard close by him during a news conference at a restaurant near the ballpark. "Two weeks ago, history was made. I was lucky enough to be in the house."

Murphy plans to share at least some of the proceeds with a friend who attended the Giants game with him. They were in town for a brief stopover on a trip to Australia when Murphy wound up with the lucky prize.

Murphy left the ball in safekeeping with a bank in San Francisco during his more-than-weeklong trip to Australia. He returned to the Bay Area on Sunday to make arrangements for the ball.

Bonds has said he believes his home run balls belong to the fans.

"I haven't spoken with Barry," said Murphy, who is considering attending business school in New York City. "I would like to meet him."

[tacomax]

I'll have a go at getting number 755 - I refuse to get into a bidding war with you on 756.

[bigboydan]

I'll have a go at getting number 755 - I refuse to get into a bidding war with you on 756.

Trust me Taco you won't. I will be bidding on 757.

[Wheell]

I'll take the under on the value of the ball. Sotheby's is saying at least 500k but I have to think it goes for well less than that. People hate Bonds and it isn't his final home run, so it isn't the record ball, just the record breaking ball.

[BigDaddy]

i would sell but its a shame that a true fan couldnt just keep the ball without being taxed just isnt fair IMO

[Wheell]

Actually the tax laws are unclear. When McGuire was making his run a fan said that if he caught the ball he would give it to McGuire. The IRS issued a proclamation that he would still be liable for the taxes on the balls' worth. There was an uproar and the IRS retracted the proclamation. The general consensus now is that the fan would be required to pay taxes upon the sale of the ball, ergo the guy is just selling the ball since he figures the value is more likely to go down then up so it is time to cash in.

[tacomax]

The general consensus now is that the fan would be required to pay taxes upon the sale of the ball

I thought that the consensus was that he would have to pay taxes once he'd caught (i.e. owned) the ball?

[Wheell]

from: http://sports-law.blogspot.com/

Believe it or not, there are far more interesting legal issues surrounding the new home run record than steroids. For example, what are the tax ramifications to the fans who caught the record-tying 755th home run ball and the record-breaking 756th home run ball? Here on the blog, we very rarely discuss tax law issues in sports. It's one of those areas that people tend to shy away from either out of fear or boredom. But tax law and policy is actually a fascinating and intellectually stimulating subject area. My advice to any law student interested in eventually practicing sports law is to strongly consider taking a basic federal income tax course.

The fan who caught number 755 announced yesterday that he was going to sell the souvenir ball through SCP Auctions and SCP expects the ball to fetch at least $75,000 to $100,000. But the fan who caught number 756 told NBC's "Today Show" on Thursday that he was leaning toward keeping the ball, even though it could fetch around $500,000. So here's an interesting tax question: Does the fan recognize taxable gain when he catches the ball and takes possession, or does the fan recognize the gain when he sells or disposes of the ball?

There is a classic case in all the casebooks about a taxpayer who suddenly finds a bag of cash stashed away in an antique piano that he purchased years before. The court held that the taxpayer recognized taxable gain in the year he found the cash, not when he obtained the piano, because the cash wasn't reduced to possession until he actually found it. But I don't see how the IRS could take the position that the fan recognizes taxable gain when he takes possession of the ball. The reason being that the ball is not like cash, which would be recognizable gain because cash is immediately liquid. The ball is more like stock; until it is liquidated (i.e. sale or dispossession), its value is not recognized by the taxpayer. Treating the gain as taxable on sale or dispossession of the ball makes sense from a policy standpoint as well. While the IRS could determine the amount of the gain prior to sale or dispossession based upon a reasonable estimate of the ball's value at the moment, that value is subject to major fluctuation up or down (much like stock) depending upon the results of baseball's steroid investigation as well as the future prospects of A-Rod challenging Bonds' record (which, by the way, is becoming more difficult for him as Bonds keeps hitting more home runs).

On the other hand, lottery winnings and non-cash prizes are subject to tax withholding. For example, if the fan had instead won a car at the game that night, the value of the car would be taxable to the fan this year. The ball is distinguishable from lottery winnings because it's not in the form of liquid cash like lottery winnings. But is the ball analogous to a non-cash prize such as a car? While both contain the element of "an accession of wealth," non-cash prizes (unlike the ball) typically result in immediate use and benefit to the taxpaper, e.g. the taxpayer gets to drive around in a brand new car or wear a shiny new watch out on the town.

The Associated Press notes that the IRS seems reluctant to clear up the confusion:

With six-figure treasures so rarely falling out of the sky, the agency declined to comment Wednesday on what regulations would apply and whether they would be enforced in the case of the Bonds ball. History does not provide much of a guide since most fans who have been lucky enough to snag previous long balls have chosen to sell their mementos. And at least one ball was as much a source of embarrassment for the IRS as revenue. As Mark McGwire chased the mark for most home runs in a season in 1998, IRS officials initially said the ball that broke Roger Maris' long-standing record could be subject to taxes even if it were returned to McGwire. The statements were ridiculed by politicians and quickly disavowed by the agency's top brass. "All I know is that the fan who gives back the home run ball deserves a round of applause, not a big tax bill," then-IRS Commissioner Charles Rossotti said at the time.

[Dark Horse]

That is not the record setting ball. That will be the final HR of Bonds career. Catch that ball and we'll talk.

[denn333]

good move on his part.