Aug 8, 2007 1:15 am US/Eastern
Mets Fan Emerges From Bleachers Holding Bonds Ball
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) ―
With the crack of the bat a brief stillness settled over the right-center field bleachers at AT&T Park as Barry Bonds' record breaking ball rocketed toward the crowd.
Then the scrum was on.
As the specially-marked baseball landed a few rows up, dozens of fans wrestled for it and the promise of riches it carried. Suddenly, the metal bleachers vibrated with energy. Grunts, cheers and the cries of frightened children broke the silence as parents sought to shield their youngsters from the chaos.
In the middle of it all was Matt Murphy, 22, of Queens, N.Y., who emerged from beneath the pile of humanity holding the record-breaking ball. His face was bloodied and his clothes stretched and torn from his battle in the bleachers.
A team of San Francisco police officers moved in, extracted Murphy from the crowd, and quickly led him through a tunnel and into a secure room. As he high-fived other fans, Murphy, wearing a New York Mets jersey, slid the ball into the back pocket of his plaid Bermuda shorts.
Reporters screamed out questions, but all he managed to say was, "I'm Matt Murphy from Queens, N.Y."
Baseball memorabilia experts have pegged the ball's value at $400,000 to $500,000. That's well below the $3 million fetched by the ball Mark McGwire hit to break Roger Maris' single-season home run record in 1998, but still a hefty sum.
Murphy was expected to appear at the postgame news conference in San Francisco, but did not show up. It is not known at this time what he plans to do with the ball.
Bonds, however, told reporters after the game he didn't want the record ball.
"I just hope (Murphy) is OK," Bonds said. "I never wanted the ball."
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
