RUTH-LESS!
Hard-up Sheen shops Babe relics in squeeze play
IT’S THE BOTTOM of the ninth for cash-strapped Charlie Sheen, who is selling two pieces from his prized Babe Ruth memorabilia collection because of money woes that surfaced after his HIV-positive status became public.
Sheen, the hard-partying actor who crashed and burned along a fast-paced road littered with prostitutes and drugs, revealed himself as the man behind the sale of Ruth’s 1927 World Series ring, according to ESPN.
Sheen is also selling his original copy of the 1919 “Curse of the Bambino” sales contract that sent the slugger from the Boston Red Sox to the New York Yankees.
Lelands.com, an online auction house, is handling the sale. Bidding ends Friday.
Although Sheen’s revelation didn’t mention his medical status, earlier reports said the former “Two and a Half Men” star has struggled to find work, and is liquidating his assets to pay his bills — and to fight lawsuits connected to the fallout from his diagnosis.
Sheen, 51, is being sued by an ex who claims he lied about his HIV status. A lawsuit filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court does not name Sheen or the plaintiff, but the documents, acquired by Us Weekly say the defendant discussed his HIV on TV on Nov. 17, 2015, and June 21, 2016, the same days as the actor’s “Today” show interviews. Sheen, meanwhile, told ESPN that it was time for him to move on from the Ruth items. “I’ve enjoyed these incredible items for more than two decades and the time has come,” said the actor, who played pitcher Rick Vaughn in the “Major League” movies. “Whatever price it brings is gravy.”
Bidding on the ring has topped $600,000, which will make it the highest priced sports championship ring ever sold.
The gold ring marked the culmination of one of the greatest individual seasons in baseball history, when Ruth belted 60 home runs en route to a World Series sweep over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The high bid on the contract, which was the copy owned by Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert, has surpassed $400,000. The copy owned by Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold in 2005 for $996,000.
The fallen star also once owned the baseball that went through Bill Buckner’s legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series that the Mets went on to win against the Red Sox.