Yankees captain Aaron Judge plans to talk to owner Hal Steinbrenner, optimistic about 2024: “We’ll be in a good spot”
The New York Yankees missed the playoffs in the first year of Aaron Judge's captaincy. Despite coming in as World Series contenders, they finished outside the playoff picture. In fact, they're going to finish with 83 wins, at best, an unforeseen disaster of a season.
Nevertheless, the captain is upbeat about their chances in the future. He was electric all year when healthy but missed two months after crashing into a stadium wall to make a game-saving catch. He reckons the team is in a good spot for the future.
Judge plans on speaking with owner Hal Steinbrenner, who is going to audit everything they have done and evaluate where the franchise is:
“I'm excited to build off of what we got here. And if we can add a couple more pieces down the road this winter, then we'll be in a good spot.”
The Yankees have a core of Judge, Gerrit Cole, Gleyber Torres, Anthony Volpe, Carlos Rodon (who has been poor in short appearances due to injury and ineffeciency) and Clarke Schmidt.
They will need to build, but Judge reckons they're only a couple of players away from a return to prominence.
Aaron Judge believes in Yankees future
The Yankees appear to have a dire future ahead of them. DJ LeMahieu, Anthony Rizzo, Giancarlo Stanton and other aging stars were either poor or injured last year. The overall roster isn't getting much younger.
They need a left fielder and a third baseman sorely, but there's a reason the team was expected to contend. With a few savvy moves and perhaps an overhaul of their front office vision, they could be back to their prestigious status.
Aaron Judge believes in that. The captain was in the clubhouse and knows what this team could do with a full season and a few more players. They have a core worth adding to, but they need to hit on every move this offseason to make it work. Their captain believes it's in their future.