Getty Image
Aaron Judge has been in a season-long battle with the Yankees for a contract extension in the Bronx. Some digging on social media has fans believing the talks aren’t going well.
Judge entered the season knowing that this could be his last in New York. The club actually offered the outfielder a seven-year deal worth $213.5M, but he turned it down.
That turned out to be the right move, as he’d go on to have a career year. Judge nearly won the American League’s triple crown on his way to setting the Yankees’ single-season home run record. On the season, he hit .311 with 62 homers and a league-leading 131 runs batted in.
He helped the Yankees win 99 games, landing the second overall seed in the AL postseason. Unfortunately, the playoffs weren’t kind to either Judge or the Bronx Bombers as they were quickly swept in the ALCS by the Astros. Judge hit just 5-for-36, tallying 15 strikeouts. In that sweep to Houston, he recorded just a single hit.
The Yankees haven’t yet made a move to ensure that the slugger remains in the Big Apple. Online activity on Judge’s part doesn’t give fans hope that a deal is coming.
Aaron Judge doesn’t follow the Yankees on Instagram.
Conspiracy theorists will tell you that this social media activity is the end all be all, and that the superstar has disowned his team as many fans disowned him following a rough playoff stint.
That may not be the case here.
It looks like Judge hasn’t been following the Yankees on Instagram all season long, and possibly longer. A screenshot from last July shows as much.
Seeing people say that Aaron Judge unfollowed the Yankees. He was never following them pic.twitter.com/3Shgp7YAVv
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 28, 2022
While the Instagram drama can likely be dismissed, it doesn’t erase the unsettling feeling around the situation. Jon Heyman of the NY Post writes that the club is “uneasy” about Aaron Judge’s free agency.
They just aren’t sure how badly he wants to stay… There was a clubhouse sense he had a bitter taste following spring negotiations.
It will all unfold over the coming offseason, though the belief from many is that the Yankees are still the favorite to land Judge’s services. Until he signs the paperwork, though, fans will continue to sweat.