ARLINGTON, Texas — As he walked through a concourse in the outfield at Globe Life Field, high-fiving other fans and surrounded by a sea of cameras, it was almost as if Cory Youmans had hit a huge home run.
Instead, he had hit the jackpot.
Youmans made the catch of a lifetime Tuesday night, snagging the ball New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge launched for his American League-record 62nd homer.
The historic souvenir came sailing into the front row of Section 31 in left field, a drive Judge hit to lead off the second game of a day-night doubleheader against the Texas Rangers. Youmans snared it on the fly.
Youmans, from Dallas, works in the financial world, and there is no telling what the ball could be worth. With security personnel around him as he took the ball to be authenticated, Youmans was asked what he planned to do with the prize.
“Good question. I haven’t thought about it,” he said.
After the Yankees lost 3-2, Judge said he didn’t have possession of the home run ball.
“I don’t know where it’s at,” he said. “We’ll see what happens with that. It would be great to get it back, but that’s a souvenir for a fan. He made a great catch out there, and they’ve got every right to it.”
Youmans was among the crowd of 38,832, the largest to watch a baseball game at the 3-year-old ballpark.