Collecting Game-used: Accidental photo-match ... via grab bag

Sometimes, it's just dumb luck.

That's the lesson of this month's Collecting Game-used item. In short, this baseball had been sitting on my desk a while now -- I picked it up via a grab bag/mystery box via Fanatics for a cheap price (less than two blasters) -- and figured I'd finally do a photo check for the players noted on its MLB Authentication.

It had three names attached but none that made me really want to go look -- the downside of a mystery box -- but it turned out to be a jaw-dropper thanks to details mentioned in info from the photographer who's noted above. This swing from Wilmer Difo came in the eighth inning -- his only swing of the at-bat -- that made this one a match.

You can keep reading to see the full details ... and the ball in action.

THE BASICS ...
Game-used ball (MLB Authenticated): Washington Nationals vs. Philadelphia Phillies, Aug. 27, 2018
Watch it in action: Right here (or above) from 2:46:27 to 2:49:08

The matchup: Phillies RP Adam Morgan vs. Nationals 2B Wilmer Difo and Nationals OF Michael Taylor
The result: Fly ball to center field by Difo (caught by Roman Quinn), four pitches to Taylor in eighth inning (two balls, two strikes per MLBA info) before it was taken out of play after a pitch in the dirt.

What's Buzz-worthy: I spoiled the highlights for this one in the intro, but being able to photo-match a game-used baseball to a specific play in an action photo isn't that easy unless you're a fan of beanballs or there were other hits involved. And getting that via a mystery box is even less likely in my experience. My initial reaction to this one was I was mildly amused since one player here had some school ties that fit my collecting niche -- that's good. But a fly ball an then a ball in the dirt are toward the lower end of the demand scale if you ask me. The match to a play, trusting the photographer got it right and it appears that way via the video, helps things out a lot here. It also doesn't hurt that both players still are members of the defending World Series champions this year. In the Difo photo, you can see what looks like the Rawlings logo as the ball spins in the air and it has a dark blotch across from it by the seems, something also match-able to a degree if you compare to the ball. This started as a typical item and now it feels like something a tad cooler. It's nothing Earth-shattering value-wise but the images should, in theory, give it a little more appeal.

>> See all past Collecting Game-used stories from Buzz here

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