Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner spoke to various members of the media today and shared some news about the team. Perhaps most notably, he said the club plans to attract Aaron Judge and his representatives to talk about a contract extension soon. (Links from Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com as well as Eric Boland of Newsday.) He says he has instructed general manager Brian Cashman to focus first on immediate needs due to the lockout creating a time pressure to build the roster, but that talks will begin before opening day on April 7th.
The batsman right fielder enters his final year of team control. Since the 2021 season ended, Judge has often said he is open to an extension that would allow him to stay in the Bronx beyond this year. However, the star outfielder said yesterday that he is not interested in negotiating after Opening Day.
“If we can talk and do something in spring training before the season starts, that would be perfect, especially since this is an important year,” Judge told reporters (including SNY’s Andy Martino). “We have a lot of things to focus on throughout the year, win the division and win the championship here in New York. I don’t want the contract or renewal talk and all that talk to distract me for a year. So if we can agree on something here in the spring before we go to New York, that’s great and it would be an honor. If not, we’ll talk after the season.”
Needless to say, an extension for a referee won’t come cheap. So far in his career, he has hit 572 games, hit 158 home runs, and has a slash of .276/.386/.544, giving him a wRC+ of 151 and a 24.3 fWAR. The three-time All-Star has one of the best performances of his career. Judge totaled 633 plate appearances last season and hit .287/.373/.544 with 39 home runs. As he had throughout his time in the big leagues, he had the highest exit speed and was considered a capable right field defender.
The judge will definitely not feel any financial pressure associated with making a deal below market. Not only has he not been a free agent for six months, he has already earned over $13 million in arbitration earnings. More importantly, he could more than double that figure in the coming season. MLBTR member Matt Schwartz predicts that Judge will earn a handsome $17.1 million salary during his most recent passage through the arbitration process. He is due to enter the market next winter ahead of his 31-year campaign, where he could become one of the best players available if he doesn’t sign an extension in the coming weeks.