Alex Rodriguez knows a thing or two about contract negotiations with the Yankees.
The two-time MVP with the Yanks opted out after his second MVP season in pinstripes, announcing the decision during the 2007 World Series before agreeing to a 10-year extension worth $275 million.
Now, 15 years later, the current franchise superstar is heading towards free agency unless the two sides can agree to a deal, and Rodriguez says the staring contest is going to end up costing his former team.
“The Yankees are the most successful franchise in baseball and possibly sports, and no franchise can afford a player more than the Yankees can afford Aaron Judge,” Rodriguez said on “The Show” podcast with Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman. “The biggest [return on investment] for the Yankees is keeping Judge over any other player…I don’t think they’ll find a player since Derek Jeter that connects to that fanbase as much as Aaron Judge, and feeds the YES Network the star power that they need.
“This is a marriage made in heaven, and they both gambled, and I think it’s gonna cost the Yankees a fortune. I handicap it that there’s about a 50 percent chance he comes back to the Yankees.”
The Yanks offered Judge $30.5 million per year with their contract extension offer, which Judge looks smart to have declined as he currently leads the league in home runs. It will certainly cost more to keep the All-Star and MVP candidate in pinstripes beyond 2022.
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