MLB organizations sign superstars to long-term contracts with hundreds of millions of guaranteed money for their production in the first four to six years of the deal, not the last few.
That's what the New York Yankees did in December 2022, securing their franchise star, right fielder Aaron Judge, to a nine-year, $360 million deal. Judge just won his second consecutive AL MVP and third overall, but not everyone is convinced he can maintain his otherworldly stretch of hitting in future seasons.
"When he signed that $360M deal, though, there were plenty of external concerns about his injury history and whether the latter few years of this contract would be as painful for the Yankees as the Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera ones were for the Angels and Tigers, respectively," Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller wrote Tuesday.
Judge played 152 or more games in each of the previous two seasons after missing significant time with a toe injury in 2023.
A World Series will make Judge's contract more than worth it
The one thing Judge is missing in his Hall of Fame career is a World Series title. And though he turns 34 in April, recent history shows he has as good a chance as anybody to remain a superstar near the end of his contract.
At 40, David Ortiz had one of the best offensive seasons of his 20-year career with the Minnesota Twins and Boston Red Sox in 2016, hitting 38 home runs and leading MLB with a 1.021 OPS.
Similar to Ortiz, Judge will likely become a full-time designated hitter in the coming years.
New York owes Judge $40 million a year through the 2031 season. The Yankees' long-term investment in him will pay off tenfold if a championship parade rolls through New York City in the future.
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