New York Yankees All-Star slugger Aaron Judge is skipping the upcoming World Baseball Classic to concentrate on more important matters.
“It would be an honor to represent my country and play in that,” Judge recently told Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports. “But my main goal is what I can do here in New York and what I can do to bring a championship back here. I think especially after signing a nine-year contract, for me, priorities are New York. Maybe four years down the road, hopefully I can still make the team and get an opportunity to play. But right now for me, my focus is here.”
Judge earned American League Most Valuable Player honors and set a new AL single-season record of 62 home runs last year before he explored free agency.
The 30-year-old reportedly considered signing with both the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres but returned to the Yankees via a nine-year, $360M deal.
Shortly after Judge put pen to paper on the contract, he was introduced as the 16th captain in the history of the Yankees.
“My focus is on New York and especially being named captain, I didn’t want to miss any time at spring training,” he explained. “There’s so many young guys here that I’ve only seen on Twitter or the prospect reports. I want to get a chance to be around these young guys and get to know them and kind of show them what we do here.”
A recent story detailed how Judge served as an unofficial captain who created bonding moments for teammates throughout last season.
While Judge added he doesn’t think the Yankees would “mind” him playing in the World Baseball Classic, he seems to understand his contract and title demand that he keeps his eyes fixed on the ultimate prize.
The Yankees haven’t played in a World Series since they won the 2009 edition of the Fall Classic. That’s downright unacceptable for a fanbase that expects the club to compete for more than playoff berths each year.
“He had a wild offseason, a wild year,” teammate Giancarlo Stanton said of Judge. “As successful as it was, it does take a toll on you too. Having a chill, relaxing spring, making sure you get everything right for the long year is just as important, too.”
Players enjoying a “relaxing spring” won’t matter much to Yankees supporters if their beloved club isn’t the last team standing this fall.
According to OddsChecker, the “Bronx Bombers” began Wednesday afternoon tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets for the second-best betting odds to win the World Series at +800. The Houston Astros were the favorites at that time at +650.
