No deal for Aaron Judge and Yankees, who offered $213+ million extension

No deal.

A clearly disappointed Brian Cashman made the announcement - a sobering piece of news for Yankees fans on Opening Day – late Friday morning that the Yankees were unable to reach a long-term contract extension with the face of the franchise, Aaron Judge.

Speaking after the Yankees’ 6-5 victory over the Red Sox in 11 innings, Judge said he was “disappointed” a deal couldn’t get done and reiterated something he’s said repeatedly since early in the spring: He wants to remain “a Yankee for life.”

That said, Judge made equally clear there won’t be a hometown discount, either, saying: “I don’t mind going to free agency.”

He added later: “At the end of the year, I’ll talk to 30 teams. The Yankees will be one of those teams.”

What happens in the offseason is not a certainty but this much is: Judge, who turns 30 on April 26, will be a Yankee in 2022.

Still, he and the Yankees are likely headed to an arbitration hearing – Judge filed at $21 million, while the club countered at $17 million – hearings that often turn contentious. The last Yankee to head to arbitration was reliever Dellin Betances and those hearings created bitter feelings from the player’s end that never completely subsided.

“Obviously, our intent is to have Aaron Judge stay as a New York Yankee as we move forward, and I know that’s his intent as well, which is a good thing,” Cashman said earlier in the day.

Cashman, in a rarity by a team official in these matters, laid out the Yankees’ offer: In total the package was a seven-year extension worth $213.5 million which, paired with the $17 million the team offered in arbitration, would push the total package to a tad over $230 million.

Judge loves being a Yankee. That is no secret. Not talked about as frequently is he doesn’t always necessarily love the organization and some of what goes on.

One such example might have come Friday in Cashman disclosing what was offered. Though Judge said he wasn’t “upset” at Cashman releasing the offer, he left plenty for those inclined to engage in reading tea leaves.

“I don’t like talking numbers, I like to keep that private,” Judge said. “[That’s] something I kind of felt like was private between my team and the Yankees, but I’m not going to get into that.”

Asked directly if he was bothered by it, Judge smiled.

“Cash has a job to do. This is what he does. I’m a ballplayer, he does what he does. I can’t control [that],” he said.  

Predictably, after weeks of radio silence on the matter, an organizational leak sprung a couple of hours before Cashman spoke and during the game a couple more leaks sprung as well about offers made and money and years demanded by the Judge camp. It is not unusual for teams to do this in order to paint a player a certain way publicly – typically as being greedy – in order to swing the PR pendulum in a given team’s favor.

While not surprising the organization took that tact with Judge, it is nonetheless an interesting approach to take with a player who is mostly universally adored by the fan base.

For his part, Judge declined to characterize the negotiations in terms of specifics and Cashman did as well, with the exception of the offer itself.

 Cashman called the talks between the sides “very healthy” and “without animus,” adding later: “It was really good, healthy dialogue that did not lead to a positive conclusion at this date. But it doesn't mean that a conclusion in a positive way for the Yankees and Aaron Judge together in the future can't happen. It's just not going to happen right now.”