Are they gone? Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and other Yankees who could be elsewhere in 2023
NEW YORK – Earlier than they had ever hoped, the New York Yankees’ 2022 season ended Sunday night with a four-game AL Championship Series sweep by the Houston Astros, their bitter October nemesis.
Now, an uncertain but vastly interesting offseason has begun in the Bronx.
In the coming days, ownership, management, scouts and club officials will huddle to dissect what went wrong in 2022 and set the strategy for 2023, which is 14 long years since the Yankees’ last pennant.
Everything begins with Aaron Judge and his fascinating foray into free agency, when that huge, personal wager on his own performance should pay off handsomely – regardless of a poor ALCS.
Aaron Judge, OF
Will the Yankees make a fast, bold offer out of the gate? How much are the San Francisco Giants willing to spend to bring Judge back to Northern California? What about the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets, or the dreaded Mystery Team? And how will Judge’s personal, pinstriped history impact MLB’s most intriguing free-agent case?
Jameson Taillon, RHP
Earned $5.8 million in his free agent walk year, compiling a solid season. But he might not be in the rotation plans with Gerrit Cole, Luis Severino, Nestor Cortes and Frankie Montas as the front four.
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
After belting 32 homers and posting an .817 OPS with superb defense in 130 regular season games, Rizzo can opt out of the 2023 portion of a two-year, $32 million deal. Would he? And how much of a raise might he expect at age 33, with increased lower back issues? Perhaps a re-worked, new two-year deal is already in the plans.
