Hal Steinbrenner spoke with reporters via Zoom on Wednesday, and if one things was made clear, it was that there likely won’t be much talking between the team and Aaron Judge about a contract extension until after the season.
“There is no doubt we are hopeful that is the case, but there is a lot of discussion to be had,” Steinbrenner said when asked about his confidence in re-signing Judge, via Marly Rivera of ESPN. But we are not going to do anything until the season is over.
Hal Steinbrenner on his level of optimism that the #Yankees will be able to resign Aaron Judge: "There is no doubt we are hopeful that is the case, but there is a lot of discussion to be had. But we are not going to do anything until the season is over."
— Marly Rivera (@MarlyRiveraESPN) July 6, 2022
“[Judge] has been phenomenal, not only his play on the field, his leadership is phenomenal. And we are all thrilled.”
Judge has become a perennial MVP candidate and the league’s home run leader since turning down an extension offer from the Yanks that equated to $30.5 million per year, and while the two sides settled on a salary for 2022 and avoided an arbitration hearing, the Yankee All-Star and face of the franchise now seems to be headed for free agency unless an extension could be agreed upon.
Steinbrenner said the team doesn’t regret its initial offer, nor making it public via a Brian Cashman press conference before Opening Day.
“We knew that was going to get out anyway,” Steinbrenner said. “And as Cash said, we wanted to be as transparent as possible.”
But don’t expect any transparency about any talks between the two sides from here on out, as Yankee fans will have to continue to deal with the uncertainty that their homegrown superstar could be in another uniform by next spring.
“No matter what happens during the season, we're not going to give any updates,” Steinbrenner said. “We're just not going to do it. I mean, I completely agree with Aaron that in no way, shape, or form can this be a distraction.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
Listen live to WFAN:
Audacy App | Online Stream | Smart Speaker (just say ‘Play W-F-A-N’)
