Aaron Judge rumors: Brian Cashman knows he made a $100 million mistake

While the Yankees officially start their postseason journey in a few days, Brian Cashman was asked again about Aaron Judge’s future. He didn’t sound confident.

Cashman was blunt as always, stating that Judge made the ultimate bet on himself.

The Yankees offered Judge a seven-year, $213.5 million deal. The 30-year-old turned it down, deciding instead to go into the season on a one-year deal. Had he struggled, or gone down with an injury, it could’ve served as a catastrophic mistake and a reminder for future players to take the money while they can.

Instead, Cashman made Judge’s contract offer public, which surely rubbed the player the wrong way. In the months since, that public offered has been made to look like a poor valuation, especially considering Judge hit 62 home runs in the 2022 season.

Aaron Judge rumors: Yankees, Brian Cashman made a mistake

When asked about Judge’s contract talks just before the ALDS, Cashman did not look like a confident GM.

Cashman went on to say that of course he wants to keep Judge, but by no means is it guaranteed. The way he chose to communicate that was…less than idea.

“There’s a pot of gold but is yet to be determined what the gold, how much it weighs. But it is a pot of gold,” Cashman said.

What?

ESPN recently polled front office executives from around baseball to guess the contract Judge will receive. Those evaluations ranged from seven years for $259 million up to 10 years for $375 million. The former of those would be on the lighter end, and surely not what Judge will actually receive. This man wants Mike Trout money, regardless of his age.

The answer is likely somewhere in between. Either way, it’s unclear if the Yankees can afford him. Record season or not, expect Cashman and Judge’s representation to do some haggling this offseason.