Former MLB agent makes shocking claim about Yankees re-signing Aaron Judge

On the latest edition of the "Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney" podcast, former MLB agent Jeff Berry dropped somewhat of a bombshell regarding the free agency saga that ended with the New York Yankees re-signing slugger Aaron Judge via a nine-year, $360M agreement in December 2022.

"It’s interesting because I’ve repeatedly heard from multiple different sources: The Yankees' front office didn’t necessarily want to sign Judge long-term, but the business decision was more the ownership stepped in," Berry explained, as shared by Jimmy Hascup of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com.

The Athletic's Chris Kirschner suggested in October 2022 that Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner would not lose his "cash cow" in free agency after Judge rejected a seven-year, $213.5M contract extension offer from the club before the start of that season. 

Judge ultimately earned American League Most Valuable Player Award honors after he set a new AL single-season record of 62 home runs that year, and he reportedly considered joining either the San Francisco Giants or San Diego Padres before he re-signed with the Yankees.

Steinbrenner was credited by team senior vice president and general manager Brian Cashman in December 2022 for closing the Judge deal after the Padres offered the 32-year-old more guaranteed money than he received from the Bronx Bombers. One thing clubs such as the Padres and Giants couldn't do was make Judge the 16th captain in the history of the Yankees.

"He is an iconic player," Berry added about Judge. "You talk about the height of efficiency. ...The height of efficiency, to me, is the Yankees paying $39.9M for seven years of Aaron Judge and then having the ability to make a decision if they want to move forward with him."

Per ESPN stats, Judge began Friday's MLB action leading the entire league with 27 home runs, 67 RBI and a 1.128 OPS on the campaign. As of Friday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Judge as the betting favorite at -140 odds to win the AL MVP Award for the ongoing season.

History shows that Judge's contract could eventually become a burden for the Yankees. With that said, he's worth every penny this summer as the storied club looks to make its first World Series appearance since it won the 2009 Fall Classic.