Aaron Judge has been enjoying the free agency process so far A big offer from the Yankees Before boarding the flight Heading towards the west coast. Negotiations can be fun, but when it comes to the final decision, the reigning AL MVP has made it clear that he comes first.
“For me, I want to win,” Judge said. “I was very close to the Yankees. We were one game away from the World Series [en el 2017] And throughout the playoffs we were eliminated in the wild card, ALDS, ALDS. So my main goal is to be in a winning culture and a team committed to winning. I don’t want to have that for the rest of my life. I want to leave a legacy in the company. First, it is about a successful culture and future.
The Yankees wasted no time reiterating their desire to keep Judge in the Bronx for the next decade, extending the offer to eight years and roughly $300 million, according to ESPN’s Jeff Bassan.
It came after the club’s owner, Hal Steinbrenner, spoke to the judge on several occasions, including a face-to-face meeting in which he told the slugger: “I want you to be a Yankee for life.”
“He’s a very important piece to this team,” Steinbrenner said. “He became an even better leader this year. People rallied around him. The young guys didn’t pick up. Obviously, it’s very important to our fans and it’s very important to my family and the company.”
Three years ago, the Yankees shocked the baseball world when they agreed to a massive contract with ace Gerrit Cole at the winter meetings. Next week, general manager Brian Cashman and his baseball operations team will man the halls of the Manchester Grand Hyatt, hoping Judge will accept an invitation to continue playing in the Bronx.
“There’s still work to be done, and I want to do that with him,” Cashman said. “He’s put himself in a great position to get a lot of opportunities, so you have to give him time to make a decision. What’s best for him and his family.
Judge led the team in runs (133), home runs (62), RBIs (131), on-base percentage (.425), slugging percentage (.686), OPS (1.111), OPS+ (211) and total runs. Sites (391) reached in 2022. If he returns to the Bronx, several Yankees — including first baseman Anthony Rizzo and Cuban pitcher Nestor Cortes — have said they believe Judge should be named the team’s first captain after Derek Jeter’s departure.
“I hope Judge comes back for the good of the game,” Rizzo said. “You see a lot of team icons don’t get what they deserve. But I think the Yankees will always compete.”
