by SAN DIEGO – Everyone stand up! Aaron Judge will keep his Yankees pinstripes, the judge’s chambers will remain open for business, and the captain could be on deck.
The 2022 American League Most Valuable Player Award winner has agreed to a nine-year, $360 million deal with the Yankees, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Wednesday. The contract, which is pending a physical, has not been confirmed by the club.
It would be the largest contract awarded to a free agent in major league history, surpassing Bryce Harper’s 13-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies in 2019. The judge flew to San Diego Tuesday to rule, picking the Yankees over competing bids from the Giants and the Padres, which entered the bidding surprisingly late.
A bleary-eyed Brian Cashman said Wednesday morning he had not slept after spending the previous hours communicating with Judge and Agent Page Odle. Ultimately, the decision to honor San Francisco’s offer fell to Hal Steinbrenner, managing general partner, who called Judge directly and asked, “Do you want to be a Yankee?”
“Hal Steinbrenner would be the Mariano Rivera of these negotiations,” Cashman said. “I can’t officially say that’s happened yet, but hopefully we’re in a good place.”
From day one after the Yankees retired after the season, Steinbrenner made a point of keeping Judge, meeting personally with the slugger at least once in Tampa, Fla., where he told him he and his family hoped Judge would stay “on.” Yankee for life.” Steinbrenner has also said the appointment of Judge as the first Yankees captain since Derek Jeter (2003-14) will be on the table.
“In the case of Aaron Judge, he’s clearly spectacular,” Cashman said. “Ultimately, if the Steinbrenner family wants to talk about it, it will come out of their chair, just like when we pull numbers. Every time they want to make that decision, I support that decision 110 percent.”
The Yankees’ confidence in retaining their biggest star could not be bolstered by a TIME article published Tuesday. In it, Judge commented on his displeasure with the April 8 press conference at which Cashman volunteered Judge to reject a $213.5 million seven-year extension days ago.
“We were kind of like, ‘Hey, let’s keep this between us,'” Judge told the magazine. “I was a bit upset that the numbers came out. I understand it’s a negotiation tactic. put me under pressure Turn the fans against me, turn the media against me. I didn’t like that part of it.”
Cashman said he was caught off guard by the quote, but manager Aaron Boone noted that Judge discussed the issue in a closed meeting held the night of the Yankees’ loss to the Astros in the season-ending AL Championship Series took place.
“I knew he was a little disappointed about that,” Boone said. “We talked a lot that night. I don’t think it was intended as a tactic or anything like that. We knew there would be constant speculation about this. We kind of wanted to run to the situation. I don’t think it’s a factor in anything that’s going on.”
There was some panic in the hallways of the Grand Hyatt around noon Tuesday when an erroneous report indicated that the judge appeared poised to pick the Giants. Boone had just got out of the shower and half dressed had called Cashman to see what had happened. When Cashman replied, “Nothing,” Boone exhaled and rushed to the Yankees’ suite.
“I have a feeling he definitely belongs in pinstripes,” Boone said. “A guy of his stature and height who will hopefully live his entire career [in New York]She goes to Monument Park and the Hall of Fame as a Yankee. That would be the hope.”
Richter exceeded all expectations after turning down the extension; it was what Cashman called “the best bet ever”. Judge responded with a season to last, hitting .311/.425/.686 in 157 games and leading the majors in home runs (62), runs (133), RBIs (131), slugging percentage, on-base percentage, OPS+ (211 ) and total bases (391).
“He’s a great player and a great person who certainly has the respect of everyone in this room,” Boone said. “People look at him, look up to him. When you have a player of this caliber who is as popular and important as he is on a daily basis, you want to do your best to hold on.
