Anthony Rizzo guilt tripped Aaron Judge into staying in the best way possible

Anthony Rizzo touched an emotional chord with Aaron Judge to help convince him to return to the New York Yankees.

I don’t care how much of a macho man you might be, puppies can make anyone’s heart melt. Turns out it’s the same for Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo.

Both of the star players opted to re-sign with the New York Yankees this offseason with the hopes of running it back and finally getting over the hump to at least make it to a World Series for the first time since 2009.

Rizzo was the first to sign, with Judge’s extended free agency period serving as the biggest story of this year’s offseason. After Rizzo signed, he went on the offensive for the Yankees to try to get Judge back in the Bronx. He disarmed Judge by using puppy photos.

Anthony Rizzo used dog pictures to try to get Aaron Judge to stay with Yankees

Speaking on Judge, here’s what Rizzo said about his conversations with Judge as he made his free agency decision:

"“I did send him a couple of pictures of our dogs together, because we both have dachshunds, saying we can’t break them up,” Rizzo said. “But it was just more encouraging of, ‘What’s gonna be best for you and Sam?’”"

Let’s be real, Rizzo knew exactly what he was doing sending those pictures to Judge. A dachshund owner himself, he knows how much his dog means to Judge, and how pet owners have tendencies to put their animal’s needs before their own.

We’ll never know exactly how big a factor Judge’s dog was in the decision to stay, but it had to cross his mind, even if just for a second, at some point. If nothing else, when Rizzo sent the photos it had to push Judge a tiny bit toward the Yankees’ direction.

At the end of the day, it’s one of the many things Judge has gotten familiar with in pinstripes over the last several years. Rizzo has only been a teammate of his in New York for a season and a half now, but there are countless ways New York has become home for Judge and his family. And yes, pets are family!