Friday night, Alex Rodriguez got his 3,000th hit. It was a home run to right field, and ended up in the glove of "ballhawk" Zack Hample.

Hample has collected over 8,000 baseballs during his "career", including a few other milestones like Mike Trout's first career homer, and Barry Bonds' 724th.

When Hample announced he would be at Friday's game, people on Twitter asked what he would do if he caught A-Rod's historic ball. Hample replied "I'll give him the finger and a dummy ball. That man deserves favors from no one, least of all a fan."

After the game, in an interview with NJ.com, Hample reiterated his stance.

"My intention all along, I've been imagining this scenario as a 1-in-a-million, was not to give it back," Hample said. "You know, just because the guy who got Jeter's 3,000th hit, a lot of people called him an idiot. A lot of people said that he was a wonderful person and extremely generous. And I really think that, whatever you want to do with it is your choice."

He added, "I think that someone like Derek Jeter or Alex Rodriguez, who has made half a billion dollars in his career, doesn't really need a favor from a normal civilian and a fan like me. I don't know right now if I'm going to sell it. I mean, depending on what the Yankees could offer, I would consider giving it back. I'm not giving it back for — I don't plan to give it back for a chance to meet him and full autographed bats because I don't collect bats, I collect baseballs. Just having this ball is so meaningful to me. I can't believe that I got it."

 

Derek Jeter's 3,000th hit was also a home run, and the fan who caught it simply gave it back to Jeter for nothing in return. Most people work out a deal with the team, getting to meet the player who hit it, getting a new autographed ball or bat or jersey. The other option is for the fan to sell the ball themselves, to a memorabilia dealer or at auction.

If it was me, I really think I would just give the ball back to the player in exchange for some other swag.  Maybe if it was the home run that put A-Rod ahead of Ruth or Aaron or Bonds, I would consider selling it for a big payday, but I can't see a lot of people bidding on his 3,000th hit. It just doesn't have the appeal of a big home run number. An autographed jersey or bat, or maybe Legends tickets for an upcoming game, would be enough for me.

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