Here is the latest buzz surrounding Yankees star Aaron Judge's free agency...
Dec. 6, 7:00 p.m.
Yankees skipper Aaron Boone met with reporters at the Winter Meetings in San Diego, and while he had "nothing" to add on the current state of Judge negotiations, he did state the obvious -- that he would like to see Judge play the rest of his career in a Yankees uniform.
"I always feel like he certainly belongs in pinstripes and a guy of his stature and greatness, hopefully he spends his entire career into monument park and into the Hall of Fame as a Yankee," Boone said.
A report about Judge heading to the Giants surfaced about an hour before Boone spoke (and then was later rescinded), but the manager said the Yankees had not heard anything to that point in time.
"A lot of unknown right now," said Boone.
Dec. 5, 8:45 p.m.
Brian Cashman – fresh off signing a four-year contract extension to stay general manager – says the Yankees are “certainly hopeful” they will be able to re-sign Aaron Judge and are in “active negotiations” with the slugger.
The general manager said the Yankees have made “a number of offers” to Judge this winter, but the team doesn’t have a meeting scheduled for Judge tomorrow at the Winter Meetings and was unaware of Judge coming to San Diego.
Cashman added the slugger’s representatives have not given him an indication that New York would be given the opportunity to match or surpass a final offer from another team.
When asked if the team had spent a significant time on any alternative plans if Judge doesn’t re-sign, Cashman said the focus remains to re-sign Judge.
"We don't want to look at any plan Bs, or Cs, or Ds, or Es – whatever you want to call it,” he said. “Our hopes and goals are obviously to retain our player. And hopefully, we can continue to call him our player.
“But we’ll see over time, it’s just gonna take… probably a little more time, the winter’s not gonna go forever. Sometimes players don’t sign all the way ‘til Spring Training, I don’t see that happening in this particular case, but I’m just guessing now on that.”
And when it comes to Judge’s timetable, Cashman said the team will be patient as they don’t hold all the cards in free agency.
“But we’re not driving this bus, obviously; Mr. Judge is,” Cashman said. “Balls in his court still, he’s assing market value, marketplace, life decisions, you know.”
He added: “We would love to land the plane favorably… but we’re not flying the plane.”
Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m.
Manager Aaron Boone isn't letting himself get carried away by the Aaron Judge free agency frenzy.
“I can make a case in my mind, like, ‘Of course, he's coming back and we'll get there.’ But you never know with these things," he said Monday at the Winter Meetings in San Diego. "I'm trying not to allow myself to get overly optimistic or overly pessimistic on it.”
Boone said he has spoken recently with Judge, calling in to check in on him and his family, but Boone doesn't know which way the slugger is leaning.
Around the same time the Yanks manager was speaking, Judge was walking on the field in Tampa ahead of the Monday Night Football game between the Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints.
Dec. 3, 4:50 p.m.
With Winter Meetings about to begin, a new report suggests that Aaron Judge could receive a nine-year deal.
According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, sources involved in Judge's negotiations say that it's "increasingly likely" the winning bid will be for nine guaranteed years.
ESPN reported earlier this week that the Yankees offered Judge an eight-year deal in the $300 million range. That deal would make the reigning AL MVP the highest paid position player.
SNY's Andy Martino believes the Yankees are poised to flex their financial muscle this offseason and that it's logical to see the team pay Judge more than $35 million per year for eight or nine years.
People involved in the process told Martino that Judge's free agency is moving closer to a conclusion and that it can end by next week. The 2022 Winter Meetings start Sunday, Dec. 4 and end Wednesday, Dec. 7.
Nov. 29, 7:20 p.m.
Aaron Judge may be getting close to making a decision in free agency, according to SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino.
Martino said on Tuesday's Baseball Night in New York that he is "hearing from people who are involved in this process” that the situation feels like it is moving closer to a conclusion.
There are only a few teams who can and are willing to pay the kind of money Judge demands on the open market, and Martino said he is "getting the vibe" that this could be nearing a conclusion by next week.
"Let's just say I wouldn't be stunned if he signed at the Winter Meetings," Martino said. "I just think we're getting a little bit closer and it's not gonna be one of those things that stretches deep past the holidays like we see with some of these huge free agent deals. I think we're getting there."
This year’s Winter Meetings in San Diego run from Dec. 4 - 7.
Nov. 23, 2:49 p.m.
Judge met with the Giants on Nov. 22 in San Francisco, during what was a day of "multiple meetings that went all the way up to the ownership level," reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
Morosi said it's his belief that a formal offer from the Giants could be made within a week, and that Judge could choose which team he's signing with within the next two weeks -- before the end of the Winter Meetings, which run from Dec. 4 to 7.
SNY's Andy Martino reported earlier this week that this did not appear to be an offseason where the biggest stars would wait long to sign.
Nov. 21, 9:07 p.m.
Judge has arrived in San Francisco and is expected to meet with the Giants sometime this week, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
The Giants have widely been considered as one of the Yankees’ top competitors for the 2022 AL MVP this offseason. Judge, of course, was born in Sacramento, California and grew up a Giants fan.
The Dodgers are also expected to make a strong attempt to land Judge this offseason.