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The New York Yankees are shifting their attention to free agency after laboring through another rough postseason campaign. The biggest item on their to-do list involves re-signing Aaron Judge in free agency, and the early returns show that that may be easier said than done.
Judge is coming off the contract year of all contract years, as he made the Yankees pay dearly for not signing him to an extension earlier. Judge put together a historic season of hitting that will earn him a massive new contract in free agency; the only question is whether or not the Yankees will be the one signing his checks next season.
New York has the inside track to bring Judge back, but it's going to be a lot harder to accomplish based on what he just did for the Yankees this season. While everyone believes that there is no reason for New York to not bring back Judge, there are actually some pretty big reasons why they should avoid re-signing him and let him walk in free agency. Let's take a look at three reasons and see why they are so important to consider here.
3. Aaron Judge is already 30 years old
There are a lot of things to consider in free agency, especially when it comes to the MLB, where long-term contracts are the norm. A huge ten-year deal may look great now, but how good will it look halfway through the deal? That's something that will definitely have to be considered, as Judge is already 30 years old and will turn 31 early next season.
In the immediate future, this isn't a particularly big concern. The Yankees want to win now, and Judge is at the peak of his powers. Handing him a long-term deal may not necessarily end well, but it gives the Yanks their best shot at winning a World Series title with their current core group intact.
The problem is that Judge won't always be hitting 62 home runs in a season, and the drop off in his production could be coming sooner rather than later, There's a decent chance Judge will remain the best hitter on the planet over the next few seasons, but that likely won't be the case at the end of a potential long-term deal for him, which has to be a bit concerning for New York and other potential suitors.
2. Aaron Judge has consistently let the Yankees down in the playoffs
Judge has been fantastic in the regular season for the Yankees, but when the regular season ends and the playoffs roll around, the same cannot be said for him. New York has struggled pretty frequently in the playoffs recently, and a big reason for that is because Judge has a habit of disappearing on the biggest stage for this team.
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Judge has played in 44 postseason games for the Yankees, and his numbers aren't exactly good (.211 BA, 13 HR, 25 RBI, .772 OPS). He's also struckout a whooping 66 times during that stretch, so Judge has gone from being the consistent all around hitter leading the Yankees to a boom-or-bust option like the rest of the team.
Judge's most recent postseason was his most brutal, as he hit just .139 with two home runs and three RBIs. That's not production that is deserving of getting you a massive six-figure deal, and while Judge has been fantastic in helping the Yankees reach the postseason, he needs to be much better in helping them actually win once they are there. Until he can do that, the massive deal he's about to get won't be justified.
1. Aaron Judge is going to get paid for a season he won't be able to replicate
The reason Judge is set to become a very rich man (not that he isn't already) is because of the season he just put together with the Yankees. There's no denying that Judge's numbers (.311 BA, 62 HR, 131 RBI, 1.111 OPS) are outrageous, and worthy of a big deal, but it's also worth noting that Judge is not going to produce like that in a season ever again.
Judge had a great season, yes, but there's a very slim chance that he will be able to replicate his production from the 2022 season going forward. Even if he does, which again, is very unlikely, how many seasons will he be able to hit like that? As previously mentioned, he's going to be 31 next season, so the drop off in production for Judge could very well be right around the corner.
Simply put, Judge is going to get paid for numbers he's almost certainly not going to be able to recreate. The Yankees could hand him a massive deal, but if they couldn't win a World Series with him this season, how are they going to be able to do so with him tied up to a massive contract? Judge is good, but the Yankees are going to destroy their franchise by tying themselves to a long-term deal, and they shouldn't re-sign him unless it's on their terms.
