New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge is in line for a major payday after the 2022 season, and David Ortiz wants Judge’s current team to show him the money.
Judge, who turned down a seven-year, $213.5 million extension offer from the Yankees before the season, settled on a contract with the team in June to avoid arbitration. He will earn $19 million this year with a $250,000 bonus if he is named American League MVP and an additional $250,000 if he wins World Series MVP.
During Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game, Ortiz took FOX viewers on a tour of the American League All-Star dugout, speaking to multiple players. The soon-to-be-inducted Baseball Hall of Fame member squeezed in between Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge on the dugout railing, and had a three-word message for the Yankees organization and their looming free agency decision regarding Judge.
“Hey Aaron,” Ortiz said. “All I gotta say is, ‘pay the man!'”
While it remains to be seen if the Yankees will pony up the money it will likely take to keep Judge in the Bronx, one National League team is viewed as a threat to land the 30-year-old slugger.
Judge is certainly driving up his price tag with an MVP-caliber season so far. At the All-Star break, he leads the majors in home runs (33) and runs scored (74), and is second in slugging percentage (.618), third in OPS (.983) and tied for third in RBI (70).
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