Jon Heyman tweeted it yesterday.
And so here we are...
The Yankees have batted. Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman talked up their love for Aaron Judge. They floated an unofficial number - $337 million. Now, we wait.
The Dodgers are what they Yankees used to be. After them comes the Giants, who in this century have won three times more championships than the Yankees. Then its whomever wants to shock the world - the Padres, the Cubs, the Phillies?
We wait...
But it's a long, long drop-off to Cody Bellinger.
With any luck this is just for show. "See, no collusion!"
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ReplyDeleteI thought 8 years at $37M/year would be a fair offer. Yankees reportedly offering 9 years at $37.4M which would make him the second highest-paid position player behind Rendon, Rendon's contract being an idiotic deal, and it's about $2M/year more than Trout with Trout's contract being up after 2030. Not as much as the three glory boys but those guys will be out of baseball within 4 or 5 years anyway.
I'm not going to bash the Yankees on this, although lord knows I'd love to. Hal can pay more, of course he can, but is Judge worth more? Can't say. I don't know what his true value is to the Yankees but I'm sure Hal does.
I won't bash until the Dodgers get him for the same AAV for one extra year or the Giants get him for 9 at $39M. It's a good Fiscal Hal barometer: if he gets beaten by one of those types of offers he's truly a tight-fisted asshole who can very likely afford to top them but jut won't, because fiscal and shareholders and whatever other excuses. If he goes hard to the rim though, ups his offer to outbid the someone elses, well OK then. I guess.
Losing Judge will kick that door wide open for the Martian! Let the Hype Machine begin
ReplyDeleteWhat happened to Cody Bellinger, anyway? He was great, he was hitting like a madman, making his father proud, and now he's washed up?
ReplyDeleteI missed the in-between years, I guess.
Give Judge 40 mil for eight or nine years. Whatever. An extra million or two doesn't really make a difference to tax avoidance.
And also...is Judge's agent smart enough to be fanning some of these rumors and pointing out the Dodgers' situation to eager sportswriters? I wonder.
Luckily the tax consideration for Cali and NY are similar so it's not like he would go to say the Rangers and save 15+% on taxes each year.
ReplyDeleteIt's all become Monopoly money to me anyhow.
Either way that this goes, there are valid arguments to be made pro and con.
Either way, my life won't change in any meaningful way.
ReplyDeleteAnd that Arch is a healthy attitude
The Genius and Cheapskate Hal are working on excuses.
ReplyDeleteIn response to not signing Judge, Ca$hole will sign Nelson Cruz to a 5 year contract worth $74 million and claim to have saved money. Then plead poverty for the next five years.
ReplyDeleteYanks should have made their decision on Judge a year ago: trade him or sign him.
ReplyDeleteHaving done neither, they have one option: sign him. The fall-off in all revenues will dwarf any amount of money they "save" by not signing him.
And yes, being forced to sign him, they might as well make the most of it. Give him $40 mill a year for 10 years! Make him the first $40 mill man! The $400 mill man! Go all out. Maximize the publicity!
They won't.
Thank you Mildred.
ReplyDeleteThat was a true life message that my Depression Era, children of immigrants told me sagely on many occasions.
And of course, "eat your vegetables, there are people starving in China."
Someone better bid on Judge besides the Yankees. Otherwise, that would look like collusion on the part of baseball owners to bring down prices. Looks like the Yankees and the Mets have a 'gentleman's agreement.'
ReplyDeleteIs it industry wide? Inquiring anti-trust lawyers and labor unions want to know!