The MLB season is in the books but that does not mean things have gone quiet for baseball fans. The race to sign superstar free agent Aaron Judge is on, and NFL icon Tom Brady has admitted to getting involved.
Judge enjoyed a historic season with the New York Yankees, breaking the American League record for home runs with 62, surpassing Roger Maris' 61-year-old benchmark, and the 30-year-old right fielder was named MVP in the process.
With his contract up and uncertainty over whether he will return to Yankee Stadium, several franchises are circling with a rare chance of signing a superstar. Judge is tipped to fetch a deal in excess of $300million (£247m) on the open market, and the Yankees are believed to have already made an offer in the ballpark of that figure.
Should Judge leave the Yankees, the La Dodgers, San Fransisco Giants and the Tampa Bay Rays are among the top contenders to secure his signature.
Judge – wearing the jersey of wide receiver Mike Evans – was in Tampa on Monday night as Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers produced a late comeback to squeak past the New Orleans Saints for a 17-16 victory at Raymond James Stadium, and the MLB star met up with his NFL counterpart before the game.
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Later on, Brady wrote about their exchange on Twitter. He posted: "Gave him my best pitch! Thanks for coming out @thejudge44."
Who exactly Brady was pitching for is unclear. Perhaps he was selling the perks of the local area with Judge linked with a move to Tampa, or he could have encouraged him to head elsewhere. After all, he did grow up with the Giants as his hometown team.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone says he is still in the dark about Judge's future. “I don’t feel anything. I really don’t,” Boone told The Athletic. “I can make a case in my mind that of course he’s coming back and we’ll get there. You never know with these things. I’m trying to not allow myself to get overly optimistic or overly pessimistic on it.
"In the end, it’s Aaron and his family and (Yankees managing general partner) Hal (Steinbrenner) and (general manager) Brian (Cashman) obviously negotiating and we’ll see where it ends up.”
Cashman added: “When the dust settles and the time has gone by and the negotiations have been exhausted, and he has a chance to vet every opportunity that exists that is legitimate that he will realise that this is the best place for him and his family moving forward.
"And then if he doesn’t, then we’ll thank him for the time he was here and find ways to be the best versions of ourselves as we move forward like we’ve always wanted.”
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