Do not expect the New York Mets to enter a bidding war with the Yankees for outfielder Aaron Judge.
The New York Yankees are officially in offseason mode after they were swept in the American League Championship Series by the Houston Astros for the third time in seven years. They have plenty of players hitting free agency, but their most important being star outfielder and AL MVP favorite Aaron Judge. Considering his historic season, highlighted by his 62 home runs, he is expected to garner attention from interested teams. But what about the team across town from the Yankees?
SNY’s Andy Martino wrote in his latest column that Mets are not expected to fight the Yankees for Judge, citing that Mets sources told him the very same thing when the outfielder declined the team’s offer ahead of the 2022 season.
Don’t expect Mets to fight Yankees over Aaron Judge
Martino continued in his column that after talking to people connected to the Mets that they view Judge as a Yankee “uniquely tailored to be an icon” for the franchise. That, and that Mets owner Steve Cohen and Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner “enjoy a mutually respectful relationship.”
However, Martino was told that the only way that those involved could see the Mets making a move for Judge is if the Yankees declare that they are no longer in the running to re-sign him.
The Yankees held a press conference on Friday featuring manager Aaron Boone and general manager Brian Cashman, and fielded questions from the media. Both expressed interest in bringing back Judge for the foreseeable future.
Judge is coming off of a tremendous regular season, where he led the league with 62 home runs, 131 RBI, 133 runs scored, 111 walks, a .425 on-base percentage, a .686 slugging percentage, a 1.111 OPS, a 211 OPS+, and 391 total bases through 157 games.
This Hot Stove season, Judge will dominate the spotlight in regards to his free agency. The questions that remain are how much will he make on his next contract and will the Yankees be the team to give him that deal?