It Didn’t Land Where He Wanted

The ball Eddie Murray hit for his 500th home run will have a fitting home--the Babe Ruth Museum in Baltimore--but Murray was hoping to have it for his mantel.

Murray, the Orioles and an athletic apparel company tried to buy the ball from Dan Jones, who caught it at Camden Yards, but Jones sold it to the highest bidder, entrepreneur Michael Lasky, for $500,000.

Lasky then conducted a TV phone-in survey to determine whether he should enshrine the ball in a Baltimore hotel he owned or the Babe Ruth Museum, near Camden Yards. The museum won.

“It just shows you what’s out there,” Murray said. “You think [other ballplayers] will try to get a ball of importance back now? It’s a shame, because balls like that would mean something to a guy.”