The lucky fan who came out of the scrum in the left-centerfield seats clutching Derek Jeter's historic 3,000th hit has given the ball back to his favorite player in exchange for season tickets.
Christian Lopez, the young cell-phone salesman from up-state New York, came out of the scramble for the valuable home-run ball and held it high in the air. Early estimates of it's value start at $250,000 and have gone as high as half a million dollars because it was a homer.
It's a moot point now, Lopez said he was happy to give the ball back to Jeter.
Lopez was contacted, in the stands, by Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner via phone call after the big catch and accepted his offer of four Champion Suite seats at Yankee Stadium for the rest of the season through the World Series and assorted signed bats and balls in exchange for the coveted ball.
The die-hard Yankees fan was also promised a chance to meet with his idol, Jeter.
"That would be really cool," said the soft-spoken Lopez. "I just came here to watch history."
Now he is a part of it.
It's a sure bet that Jeter will up the reward for Lopez's unselfish act.
In a TV interview, Lopez said he was awed by the Yankee Stadium route he took to the broadcast booth. When asked about his personal life, Lopez said he was a life-long Yankees fan who claimed he was "getting by."
Christian, you did a noble thing for a grateful player. Now get ready for the interviews and attention.
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