Mets, Yankees might be in hot water already over Aaron Judge

The New York Yankees and Mets may be in trouble with MLB regarding talks about free agent Aaron Judge.

Outfielder Aaron Judge is coming off of a historic season, breaking the single-season home run record in the American League. Now, he is a free agent after spending the entirety of his career with the New York Yankees, and is expected to receive a lucrative deal.

Apparently, the Yankees and another franchise could be in hot water.

According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required), the Yankees and Mets are being investigated by MLB for improperly communicating about Judge.

The comments stem from an SNY article, in which Mets sources said that the team doesn’t expect to compete for Judge in free agency, which was the same answer they gave the outlet earlier in the year when the outfielder turned down the Yankees’ seven-year, $213.5 million contract prior to Opening Day.

Yankees, Mets reportedly being investigated for improperly communicating about Aaron Judge

Sources told Rosenthal that the article in question caught the attention of the MLB Player’s Association, and they contacted the league to investigate whether owners Hal Steinbrenner and Steve Cohen had “improper communication” with one another, and if they violated the collective bargaining agreement.

The aforementioned SNY article mentioned that both Cohen and Steinbrenner both have a “mutually respective relationship” and were not expected to change that by fighting for Judge in free agency.

Judge is coming off of a 2022 season where he led the league with 62 home runs, 111 walks, 131 RBI, 133 runs scored, 391 total bases, a .425 on-base percentage, a .686 slugging percentage, a 1.111 OPS, and a 211 OPS+.

The Yankees placed a $19.65 million qualifying offer on Judge this offseason, which he declined at the Nov. 15 deadline.

This will certainly be a story to follow throughout the offseason to see if either team will face any discipline if it turns out that they did improperly communicate with one another.