MLB Insider Suggests New Extension Figures Between Yankees, Aaron Judge
Show me the money!
That’s what Aaron Judge is going to be saying to the New York Yankees if he keeps up the torrid pace that he’s on this season.
That’s why New York Post columnist and MLB insider Jon Heyman believes general manager Brian Cashman should work to get something done with Judge now, before his price tag increases.
“I would just throw in the towel and give him the $36 million,” Heyman said on his podcast The Show with Joel Sherman. “I’d add seven years…I’d make that offer and see how that goes. At this point, it’s really hard to argue that he should get less than $36 million. They’ve already paid [Gerrit] Cole $36 million. He’s a free agent to be. He is the biggest star on the team…arguably the biggest star in the sport at the moment. To me, he should be paid the highest for a position player. ... He’s on pace for 63 home runs. He may raise that. It could be a moving target. He hasn’t said ‘I would take the $36 million no matter what.’ He’s just said he should be paid with the highest paid players in the game. At this point, I think he’s right.”
To avoid becoming a distraction, Judge made it clear that he did not want to discuss his contract during the season. Both sides have indicated that they will not publicly discuss negotiations until after the 2022 campaign ends, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they won’t go back to the table behind closed doors.
"We're not going to talk about it now going forward," Cashman said to reporters back in May. "Whether that means we're not going to talk, I'm not saying that, but we're not going to talk about it [publicly]. But he's been great. But that's no surprise, because he is great."
The Yankees’ offer to Judge was a seven-year, $213.5 million, which would be tacked onto his final year of arbitration this season, in which he is being paid a total of $17 million.
Judge was initially said to be seeking a deal north of $30 million annually, but he has been playing at an MVP level this season, thus increasing his stock and value. The 30-year-old is currently leading MLB with 22 home runs and a 1.058 OPS, to go along with a .311 batting average and 45 RBIs.
Should Judge continue on this incredible pace, the Yankees will be backing up the brinks truck. If not, someone else will. For that, there should be some urgency from Cashman and the Bronx Bombers to get a deal done before he reaches free agency.
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