Aaron Judge: It was 'brutal' early in offseason when Yanks weren't making moves
Aaron Judge during spring training at George Steinbrenner Field in Tampa on Monday. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
TAMPA, Fla. — Aaron Judge, like many Yankees fans, had his concerns early in the offseason.
And, really, fairly deep into it.
“It was brutal,” he said with a smile Monday after the Yankees went through their first full-squad workout of spring training.
“I’m seeing other teams around the league get better,” he said. “They’re making trades, they’re signing big [free agents] and we’re kind of sitting there for a while making smaller moves. It was tough there in the beginning.”
The beginning of the offseason — in early November — did produce one move of consequence, but that one was player-driven. Trent Grisham accepted the qualifying offer, of $22.025 million.
Judge wanted Grisham back, but after the centerfielder took the offer, it was mostly crickets in the Bronx, save for a roster tweak here and there.
Did Judge make his feelings known internally?
“Yeah, oh yeah,” Judge, smiling again, said to laughter. “Early on, it was pretty tough to watch. It’s like, man, we’re the New York Yankees. Let’s go out there and get the right people . . . get the right pieces to finish this off.”
Finally, after the New Year arrived, some moves involving significant names were made. On Jan. 13, there was the trade with the Marlins for lefthander Ryan Weathers. On Jan. 25, Cody Bellinger — who was high on the list of players Judge expressed to team hierarchy he hoped would be in uniform in 2026 — was brought back on a five-year, $162.5 million deal. Just before pitchers and catchers reported for spring training last week, first baseman Paul Goldschmidt agreed to a one-year deal.
That meant 24 of 26 players from last October’s ALDS roster (aside from Devin Williams and Luke Weaver) were back in the fold for this season.
And it is there where Judge, the ultimate fan favorite, differed with Yankees fans on evaluating the club’s offseason.
It took about 10 minutes after pitchers and catchers reported last week for “running it back” to get beaten into the ground in describing general manager Brian Cashman’s offseason, something about which much of the fan base remains skeptical at best and angry at worst.
Judge views it differently.
“I love it,” he said. “People might have their opinions on it because we didn’t win it all last year and fell short in the Division Series. But you get a chance to bring a lot of those guys back . . . They’re impact players.”
He added, “You bring back a guy like Cody Bellinger, he can play all over the diamond, he can hit in the middle of the order for you, he can come up with the big base hit when you need [it]. You bring back Paul Goldschmidt, who’s been an MVP . . . and what he brings inside that clubhouse, he elevates.
“I’m excited. You get another year of the young guys to develop, you bring back some big pieces, especially Trent Grisham, our centerfielder who had a breakout year. I’m looking forward to it. And then you get to add G-Cole [ace Gerrit Cole, recovering from Tommy John surgery] down the road with some other guys. I like our chances.”
He said of the front office: “They took care of business.”
There is, of course, a degree of “well, what do you expect him to say?” in that.
But Judge is as aware as anyone that his window to win that elusive first World Series title — the one element missing on a resume that already has him headed to Cooperstown on skates — while in the prime of his career is closing.
The three-time AL MVP turns 34 on April 26 and even made an age-related joke on Wednesday, the first time anyone could remember him doing so publicly.
“That’s where it’s weird now, kind of being the older guy at camp,” Judge said.
He said that with the same smile he wore during much of his 23-minute news conference.
But he wasn’t smiling when he talked about how hard this offseason was coming off yet another October disappointment.
“Any time you’re not the winner, it’s a tough offseason, it’s a tough everything,” Judge said. “I think I’ll never be satisfied until we go out there and finish it. No matter the awards, the MVPs, All-Star [games], all that stuff, it doesn’t matter. What matters is putting New York back up on top, putting this organization back to where it belongs, which is being the best organization in the game.”
Aaron Boone, meanwhile, is happy to have Judge try to accomplish that again. “It’s just been really fun to not only witness the great things he’s done on the field, but to witness him just grow as a player, as a man, as a leader, as the captain, as a father,’’ he said. “He’s just really revered by everyone that walks through that room, and that’s very real. And to have your superstar player, a face of the sport, be somebody that is so approachable — I heard one of our players talk about: ‘He makes you feel like you’re the most important person in the room.’ ’’
Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
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