Camila Sosa
After reaching an agreement with outfielder Joey Gallo for a figure of $ 10,2M dollars as salary in the 2022 campaign, only Aaron Judge remains to define his current contract with the Bronx Bombers for the rest of the current season either by a figure that evades the arbitration system or a contract extension, which, although it is a little more complicated, it ends up being the desire of the same player.
The Yankees right fielder expressed both his desire to reach an agreement on his current salary as soon as possible and the goal he has of staying in the New York uniform for life if the franchise allows it (and if they also reach their economic pretensions, of course).
Statement by Aaron Judge
“I think both sides want to reach an agreement. I know we both define different figures but that doesn’t mean that communication has stopped, hopefully we can continue talking and find a number that works for both me and them.
We’ve both talked about it (about the contract extension) but we haven’t touched any numbers so far. I am optimistic but the time window is very short. It doesn’t make me very happy to have to go to arbitration sessions because of this, I think both sides want to avoid this: go to a room, fight over a small amount (of money) and take out the boxing gloves, although in the same way I am prepared for it. I want to play here and I want to finish my career here, there’s no better place to be.”
New York Yankees star Aaron Judge told The Associated Press.
The Yankees offered a $17 billion salary for the 29-year-old during 2022, while El Juez asked for an increase to $21 billion, double the amount he had in 2021 ($10,175,000). If no agreement is reached in the days to come, the arbitration session will define the player’s salary, either in his favor or in favor of the team, without reaching a midpoint between the amounts discussed.
Judge will be a free agent after the 2022 campaign, and has reiterated that he will not negotiate any type of contract once the season begins (on April 7), so there is very little time left for the Yankees to define a multi-year deal and surely around nine figures to retain their star without touching the free agency of 2023. Last season he was the best hitter in New York, with a line of .287/.373/.544 along with 39 home runs, 98 RBIs, 89 runs scored, 24 doubles and a .916 OPS.
The loss of their best player could end up putting the nail in the coffin of the Yankees, who have not had the reinforcement that many of their fans expected even though they have one of the highest salary budgets in all of MLB.
