Yankees teammates think Aaron Judge should take a prestigious title from Derek Jeter

Nestor Cortes thinks the Yankees should bring back a prestigious title for Aaron Judge if he returns to the Yankees this offseason.

The New York Yankees have guarded their title of team captain for eight years now. Since Derek Jeter retired in 2014, no player on the roster has taken the title.

Jeter, who owns the nickname of ‘The Captain’, will always be that to Yankees fans. But it might be time for the team to consider giving the title up, especially if they can secure Aaron Judge. Nestor Cortes sure thinks so, and he claims that most of the clubhouse agrees with him.

I mean, it’s a pretty lukewarm take, right? Obviously, if Judge re-signs with the team as a free agent this winter, it’s going to be for a long-term deal, and he’s done more than enough to achieve the honor of captain.

Players may not want to come out and challenge the history of the franchise head-on like Nestor, but who better than the guy who freestyles on the mound to do just that?

The Yankees are one of the teams who is stuck in their tradition for better or for worse, so it may make some old-timer fans — as well as people in the organization — a little queasy to give the respected title up to anyone other than Jeter. But if not Judge, then who?

Judge is in his seventh year. Here’s how they compare, looking at the first seven years of Jeter’s career compared to Judge:

• World Series: Jeter had four World Series. Judge has none.
• WAR: Aaron Judge leads by 3.7
• Batting average: Jeter leads by .036
• On-base percentage: Judge leads by .002
• Slugging percentage: Judge leeads by .113
• RBI: Judge leads by 9
• Hits: Jeter leads by 451

Most of the disparities there can be explained by play style. Jeter’s average and total hits far exceed Judge, who strikes out far more but gets a lot more home runs and therefore total bases, represented in his slugging advantage. In the end, both come up with about the same number of RBI.

The titles are big, too, but Jeter played on a dynasty. Judge has had to put this team on his back.

Holding captain back from Aaron Judge would be a huge mistake

If the Yankees sign Judge to a long-term extension and don’t award him with the captain role, however honorary the title might be, it’s a huge mistake.

The Yankees already messed up earlier this year by botching a chance to secure him long-term with an extension before any other team got to offer him a contract and they messed it up. Messing up something like a title that doesn’t cost them anything other than tradition and ego would be plain silly.

And as the numbers show, Judge deserves it. His historic push to break Roger Maris’s American League (and Yankee!) record of 61 home runs should be enough proof that this is a guy you break tradition for with no reservations.

Add to all that the fact that he’s an impeccable role model and champions important topics meaningful to him like adoption off the field and does stuff like this for fans:

If you’re the Yankees front office, you have to understand that he is already doing everything you’d want a captain to do.

Call him captain.