Let the Aaron Judge sweepstakes begin!
With the New York Yankees eliminated from the postseason and 27 other teams also turning their attention to the upcoming offseason, the rumor mill is in full swing as we wait on the start of the 2022 World Series.
After a record-setting season, Judge is one of the headliners of a 2022-23 free-agent class that includes Trea Turner and opt-out candidates Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts, Jacob deGrom and Carlos Rodón.
The focus here will be on Judge and which teams can be considered realistic suitors to secure his services this offseason.
After a 62-homer, 131-RBI, 10.6-WAR season that will likely end in AL MVP honors, he is the type of player who can completely transform a franchise.
Ahead are his 10 most likely landing spots, based on spending power, roster need and ability to contend in 2023 and beyond. Let's start with a closer look at his potential asking price.
What Will It Cost to Sign Him?
It's not often a team is fully transparent in contract negotiations, but the New York Yankees looped in the media on the details of the extension talks with Judge that came up short just before Opening Day.
The team's final offer was a seven-year, $213.5 million extension, which would have been tacked onto his 2022 arbitration salary and run through the 2029 season.
A $30.5 million average annual value would have ranked 15th in the majors during the 2022 season, checking in behind the recent long-term deals signed by Francisco Lindor ($34.1M) and Corey Seager ($33M) within the past year.
After making a run at the Triple Crown, Judge could aim to surpass Mike Trout ($37.1M) for the highest annual value among all position players, or shoot for an even larger figure on a short-term deal like we saw with Carlos Correa ($35.1M) last winter.
If he does sign a long-term deal, expect Judge to become the 10th player in MLB history to ink a $300 million contract.
10. Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins showed a willingness to spend and did so in a creative way last offseason when they signed Carlos Correa to a three-year, $105.3 million deal that essentially amounted to a one-year contract with a pair of opt-outs.
If Judge wants to make a run at breaking the average-annual-value record for position players while maintaining the flexibility to control his long-term future, a similar deal with the Twins could be a dark-horse option.
For the Twins, signing Judge would open the door for a young outfielder such as Alex Kirilloff or Trevor Larnach to be used as trade bait to upgrade the starting rotation behind Sonny Gray (club option) and rookie standout Joe Ryan.