Doc Gooden: Aaron Judge should want to retire with Yankees

Retired pitching ace Dwight "Doc" Gooden believes All-Star slugger Aaron Judge should want to retire a member of the New York Yankees. 

While speaking with Bob Klapisch of NJ Advance Media, Gooden explained that he "understood" why the New York Mets moved on from him after the 1994 season but also admitted he wishes he ultimately could've returned to what was his first MLB home from 1984 through the '94 campaign. 

"I was grateful Mr. (George) Steinbrenner brought me to the Yankees (in 1996-97), but I still wanted to make things right with Mets fans, so I called them in '98 before I signed with (the then-Cleveland Indians)," Gooden told Klapisch. "They said they didn’t have room for me. I called them again in 2000. I said, 'I’ll go to Triple-A, whatever you want.' They said no. So I went back to the Yankees, won a World Series. And then I tried one more time after that. I asked for a one-day contract so I could retire as a Met. But (then-general manager) Steve Phillips said no. Still bothers me to this day.

"So my point is, and I would say this to Judge, having the chance to retire with the same team that drafted you isn’t something you should take for granted." 

While Gooden's off-the-field issues and problems with substance abuse during his career have been well-documented by individuals such as Mike Lupica of the MLB website, Judge merely hit free agency earlier this month after he rejected a seven-year, $213.5 million contract extension offer from the Yankees ahead of the 2022 season and before he earned American League Most Valuable Player honors. Judge can sign with any team but has routinely been linked in reports with a return to the Yankees that may not be made official until December or January. 

The San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers are also considered contenders to sign the Linden, California native, but Gooden thinks Judge has to be happy with the situation he has in the Big Apple. 

"He’s already the face of the franchise, and they’re probably going to make him captain," Gooden remarked about Judge's relationship with the Yankees. "So even if the money is equal, or even if it’s a little less, considering what he means to the franchise and to Yankees fans, I think he should stay in New York." 

Judge certainly can't complain about a lack of advice from some noteworthy names. Yankees great Don Mattingly and former pitcher David Cone are among those who have publicly said the 30-year-old should commit his long-term future to the Bronx Bombers sooner rather than later.