What's That Bonds Record* Ball Worth?

July 28, 2007 — -- When Barry Bonds breaks Hank Aaron's all-time home run record, it's likely that the lucky fan who retrieves the ball won't command a record price if he or she wants to sell it.

In the multi-million dollar business of sports merchandise like signed baseballs, trading cards and football jerseys, prices react to news just like the market for stocks, according to auction houses and collectors. Bonds, who is being investigated for whether he lied to Congress about using steroids, is one of a growing list of current and former star athletes whose merchandise has been discounted by links to drugs, scandals or even illness.

"If Barry Bonds had no shadow hanging over him, certainly his upcoming home run baseball would be worth up to a few times more than what it will sell for now," said Jonathan Scheier, consignment director for Heritage Sports Collectables in Dallas.

It's anybody's guess what fans will be willing to pay for a record-setting ball that may have been hit by an artificially enhanced player, the experts say. To be sure, the ball will be worth of a lot of money, but not as much as an untainted one.

"I think, on the whole, one would hope ones heroes are untarnished," said Arlan Ettinger, president of Guernsey's auction house, which has sold monumental sports memorabilia such as the Mark McGwire 70th homerun ball. "And we're not here to judge Mr. Bonds, but it's clear he doesn't have the universal popularity that some players seem to have."

Active players who fall under a cloud also may miss out on the huge market for jerseys and other sports items with their name and number on them. That's true for the Atlanta Falcon's quarterback Michael Vick, who is accused of running an illegal dog fighting ring.

"There were zero jersey sales in the last month from Michael Vick," said Craig Cable, owner of khcsports.com, which sells pro and college sports memorabilia. "Anything with his name has disappeared. We went from five to 10 jerseys a month to absolutely nothing in the last month."