With the New York Yankees set to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series – which begins 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 25, at Dodger Stadium – and resale tickets in Taylor Swift territory $1,300 a seat), many are talking numbers, especially those with dollar signs in front of them.
Not only will the cities in question be raking in the dough, but according to Baseball America, Fox TV, which will be broadcasting the games, is doing a happy dance in anticipation of ratings that could eclipse the NBA Finals. That’s because the series features a glamorous matchup between two large-market marquee teams that have a colorful 83-year history, with the Bronx Bombers’ 8-3 against the team that was once a crosstown rival, although the descendants of “Dem Bums,” as the Brooklyn Dodgers were known, won the last World Series encounter in 1981.
(Our favorite matchup in the history – game three of the 1978 World Series, with the Yanks, down two games to none, Ron “Louisiana Lightning” Guidry on the mound at Yankee Stadium and Graig Nettles at third base, Hoovering all the Dodger ground balls. The Yankees win. The Yankees win.)
But we digress from the financial numbers. Also looking to cash in is Yanks’ rightfielder — and soon to be free agent — Juan Soto, who hit the 10th inning home run against the Cleveland Guardians that put the Bombers into the World Series. As Tim Britton writes on The New York Times’ sports site “The Athletic”: “It’s very likely that Soto will set a new record for total value in a contract, eclipsing (pitcher/designated hitter Shohei) Ohtani’s $437.8 million with the Dodgers” – as in 14 years, $560 million. Will the Yanks bite – or will Soto walk? Certainly, the Yankees would seem to be able to afford him as the second most valuable sports franchise in the world ($7.1 billion, according to Forbes) behind the Dallas Cowboys ($9.2 billion). (The Dodgers are 25th on Forbes’ list at a $4.8 billion valuation.)
With tickets out of reach for many, fans are nonetheless still looking for a piece of the action, which is where Yonkers-based CollectibleXchange.com by sports marketing expert and collectibles pioneer Brandon Steiner comes in. Among the items available are a signed Soto helmet ($249.99), a signed jersey from Yankees pitching ace Gerrit Cole ($399.99) and a signed Ohtani card from 2018, when he was a rookie with the California Angels.
You don’t have to know a baseball diamond from a Tiffany one to know that the rookie card is the sweet spot. This Topps Finest Mystery Redemption Autograph Rookie Card sells for a whopping $12,500.
Ohtani is, of course, a transpacific star. Game five of the National League Division Series between the Dodgers and the San Diego Padres on Oct. 11 had an average audience of 12.9 million viewers in Ohtani’s native Japan, or roughly 10% of the country, establishing a new high as the most-watched Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason game in that country’s history.
“Can you imagine Ohtani against Judge and the Yankees in the World Series?” mused Steiner, referring to the New York Yankees powerhouse centerfielder Aaron Judge. “Ohtani jersey sales, currently the leading seller, would surge.” (Judge’s jersey is third and Soto’s, seventh.)
“Call it,” Steiner said, “Ohtani mania.”
