No one could have predicted that Aaron Judge’s contract season would feature 62 home runs and enough memories for Yankees fans to grieve for about seven lifetimes. I’d be interested to see how non-New York fans would have reacted if Judge’s landmark season had happened. different uniform.
As easy as it would be to write the transition, “And maybe we’ll find out next year when he signs with another team”, I’m not going to because the chances of him repeating this season are slim. , tiny , tiny, thin, thin – whatever best denotes “It’s not gonna happen”.
Name one hitting stat, and Judge has most likely led the league this season. I’ve been following his performance all year not because I care about Roger Maris or the Yankees record, but because I thought it was hysterical that the team known for having the deepest pockets tipped his best player and MVP.
While there were some questions about his durability, any other front office trepidation had gradually faded with each ball he disappeared into the stands. I’m not even that old by baseball fan standards, and it’s crazy to me that Brinks’ truck hasn’t made a delivery to the judge’s residence yet.
Who will sign Aaron Judge?
There have been reports that the The Giants are ready to beat the Yankees’ offer. Judge is from California and grew up as a San Francisco Giants fan, so it’s possible he’ll be lured in for the right price.
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If it’s not the Giants, there is a market, albeit limited, for a 30-year-old to come out that year. While not every team can afford to hand out a decade-long contract worth over $300 million, the Mets can — and that would be the biggest blow to the Yankee persona.
Maybe Brian Cashman is counting on prestige to make up for the money they’re reluctant to pay the judge, which would be the Yankees’ arrogance at its peak amid a World Series drought. For stars, a big part of New York’s appeal is the comfort of knowing they’ll be financially taken care of. Being overpaid has long been a perk of being a Yankee.
I guess he re-signs at a high number and relegates this column to the same level of hand twist currently reserved for the Judge argument and Shohei Ohtani MVP. (You don’t break 60 homers for the first “legitimate” time since 1961 and lose the MVP. Records are too important for baseball writers to forget.)
World Series titles and bad contracts: that’s what the Yankees do! (Did?)
The other benefit of playing in the Bronx is winning championships, which the Yankees haven’t done since 2009. For another franchise, 13 is not a dry spell. Blame the Astros, blame bad luck, blame mismanagement, blame ownership, or just blame the fact that it’s really hard to do.
Anyway, New York is not far away. The reason the Yankees of my youth were perennial contenders is that they had a core of homegrown talent surrounded by the best infrastructure money could buy. Punting on Judge is the antithesis of the club’s latest string of successes. If this kind of deal is going to crush the team budget, I have myriad questions about team finances.
Yes, I laughed endlessly at the judge’s contract season to end all contract seasons. The reality was that the Yankees ignored bad contracts like the lead in an action movie ignores bodily harm. “So what?” was once the collective response to criticism of shitty contracts.
If that happened early on, Judge would have a lifetime contract, and Yankees haters would already bemoaning Ohtani’s inevitable move to New York, along with the usual outrage over the pay disparity.
In 2022, the Dodgers and Mets have more money on the books than the Yankees’ $264 million and the Phillies – the Phillies! — are a mere $10 million less than that. I could understand mocking an all-time season if No. 99 wasn’t solely responsible for a good chunk of the team’s 99 wins. This is not a Mike Trout scenario where the numbers are hollow.
Replacing an MVP’s stats with a fusion of positional players is something Brad Pitt does in a silver ballso it’s alarming (and hilarious) to see the Evil Empire scrutinizing every credit and considering the same move.
Which is funnier: The Yankees being so cash-strapped that paying Judge risks jeopardizing what were previously thought to be bottomless coffers, or Judge signing with San Francisco a year after bringing New York fans to tears. York?