Yankees News: Aaron Judge to Receive Contract Extension Offer Before Opening Day

Cashman said that the Yankees will make a contract extension offer to Judge before the start of the MLB regular season.

Cashman declined to say if the Yankees had made an extension offer to Judge in the past.

Judge is set to become a free agent at the end of the 2022 campaign, and he is in line to make $17 million this season.

Judge has developed into one of baseball's biggest stars and has been the Yankees' best and most popular player since making his MLB debut.

He has made life miserable for opposing pitchers during his six-year MLB career, as he is a towering presence at 6'7" and 282 pounds.

Judge is a three-time All-Star and one-time American League home run champion who won the 2017 AL Freshman of the Year award and finished second in the American League Most Valuable Player voting that season. He finished fourth in the American League Most Valuable Player race.

Judge missed a lot of time due to injuries, but he has been a force when healthy.

His best season was in 2017: he had a career-high 52 home runs, 114RBI and 128 runs scored. He had a career-best.287 batting average, 39 homers, 98 runs, and 98 hits last season, despite not quite reaching those heights.

Judge has been compared to a Yankees lifer in the form of former teammate and Hall of Fame infielder Derek Jeter.

Judge has indicated that he would like to follow in the footsteps of a man who spent his entire career in New York.

In November, Judge was asked about his future with the Yankees, after taking part in a Q&A session. According to Brendan Kuty of NJ.com, Judge said that he wanted to finish his career as a Yankee. You don't know what the cards hold. I would be a Yankee for the next 10 years if it was up to me.

The Yankees have to consider Judge's injury history and the fact that he is already 29 years old when they decide to extend him.

The combination of injuries and age means the Yankees would be taking on a lot of risk if they signed him to a long-term deal.

At the same time, opposing teams would likely jump at the chance to shell out a huge contract for Judge's services given how much of a game-changer he is due to his immense power.

If Judge re-signs with the Yankees, he will be their biggest key to success this season, along with starting pitcher Gerrit Cole, and that will continue to be the case for many years to come.

There is increased pressure on the Yankees to win, and letting Judge walk could be seen as a sign that the organization doesn't have World Series ambitions, which would lead to a backlash from fans.