Do Yankees have 'plenty of time' to figure out Aaron Judge's future?
The New York Yankees had barely been booted from the MLB postseason when the focus rapidly re-fixated itself on where Aaron Judge is going to play next season.
It's been a topic that has followed the slugger around since before the 2022 season started. Yet when Judge was asked on Sunday about his future, he told the press he has "plenty of time" to figure out a contract and stay with the Yankees.
But do the Yankees have "plenty" of time to make an offer?
Judge has remained mum about his contract situation since he turned down a $213.5 million contract extension last spring. He has maintained since then that he didn't want to think about anything contract-related until the season was over -- and, to be fair, it was unlikely that was the first thing that he had on his mind immediately after the Astros completed a four-game sweep of the Yankees on Sunday night.
That being said, the window for players to negotiate and sign contracts opens five days after the conclusion of the World Series. This means all players with expiring contracts -- yes, including Judge -- are just one best-of-seven series away from being on the market.
This also sets a timer for the Yankees to put together a deal that will make Judge happy. There's no denying Judge will want a lucrative deal after having a record-setting season -- even though he hit just .139/.184/.306 in October ball. Is Judge looking for a deal closer to what highest-paid position player Mike Trout makes? Probably. But are the Yankees going to pay that?
The truth of it is that there isn't "plenty of time" anymore for Judge and the Yankees to reach a deal that will keep him in pinstripes. And if they don't get something together as soon as possible, the MLB offseason is going to be turned on its head before it even gets started.
More must-reads: