Aaron Judge Free Agency

There’s no shortage of theories about Aaron Judge’s impending free agency and what’ll drive his decision – which, by the way, he hasn’t made yet. But if Judge leaves the Yankees it won’t be just because of money. And it won’t be tied to another disappointing October. Judge hates losing but there’s more going on here.

I actually believe No. 99 would be OK pushing the rock uphill again in 2023, were it not for the souring relationship between the Yankees and their fans. The marriage deteriorated rapidly during the playoffs, but make no mistake, the booing started much earlier over the summer.

By season’s end some players and even members of the front office were left wondering whose side the ticket buyers were on.

One executive told me, “it’s never been this bad,” confirming recent reports of Yankees contacting their agents about the crowd’s behavior during the postseason.

So what’s Judge’s role in this? He was (mostly) spared the fans’ wrath, and I don’t have reason to believe the slugger made it an issue with higher-ups. But that doesn’t mean Judge wasn’t disturbed by the trend line.

People I spoke to during the season say Judge was taken aback by the way certain teammates were treated.

That’s why I wonder if Hal Steinbrenner realizes the enormity of the task in front of him.

The owner has to be more than just the market’s highest bidder for Judge. Steinbrenner needs his superstar to believe a) the Yankees are not headed for a downturn in 2023 and b) the stadium will continue to be an attractive destination for future free agents – and not a cauldron where the home team gets skewered by its own fans.

I get why outsiders would be mystified by this.

First of all, most Yankees fans are extremely loyal. And let’s face it, Judge isn’t just popular, he’s practically a cult hero.

Second, the fans who boo will tell you they’re sick of watching a runner-up — they’re not raising a middle finger at any particular Yankee, but to an overall trend in the post-George era.

Since their last world championship in 2009, the Bombers have been home watching on TV while the Giants (three times) and Red Sox (twice) have won multiple titles. The Cardinals, Royals, Cubs, Nationals, Dodgers and Braves all have rings as well.

The Yankees? Nada.

The impatience in the stands is understandable: the fans pay handsomely to watch this team and they show up at the stadium in droves. The Bombers led the American League in attendance in 2022, which is all a home team can ask for.

Still, something changed in the messaging from the stands in 2022. The Yankees were on trial from mid-summer on. What started as friendly rooting turned into a simmering rage during August’s brutal 10-18 slump. The viciousness and vulgarity was out in the open.

Like the rest of the Yankees, Judge picked up on this. He is the clubhouse’s leader, but also its eyes and ears. He rallied the Yankees in defense of Joey Gallo, who they knew didn’t belong in this market. The outfielder, who batted .159 and struck out in nearly half his at-bats, suffered from anxiety issues which only worsened with the vicious booing.

Gallo failed too often to be of any use to Aaron Boone but as the Yankees privately pointed out, he didn’t ask to come to New York. He was traded into pinstripes, doomed by the analytics department that decided his left-handed, uppercut swing was perfect for the stadium’s dimensions.

No one bothered to consider Gallo’s makeup would never fit. The more he struggled, the more teammates felt sorry for him. Judge included.

The players were also aghast at the way the slumping Aaron Hicks was taunted by chants of “Jo-ey Ga-llo” once the failed left fielder was finally traded. Hicks replaced Gallo as the new Public Enemy No. 1 in the Bronx.

Teammates were equally disturbed by Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s father being threatened on social media.

One member of the organization said, “even if it’s a small number of crazies that do stuff like this, word gets out around the league. Players from other teams talk about it. Eventually you’ll get free agents who ask, “Do I really want to play for the Yankees?””

The easy response is to wave away easily-bruised players. If they can’t take a little booing, they don’t belong in New York, right?

But the game has changed in 20 years. Unlike, say, Derek Jeter’s crew, today’s stars hear it at the ballpark and on social media.

Players say they don’t check Twitter, but family members often do. The insults are more personal and unrelenting than ever.

Even No. 99 wasn’t entirely spared. Judge got it from the fans early in the season and again at the 11th hour, as the Yankees were being swept in the ALCS. Despite one of the finest regular-season performances in American League history, Judge was 1-for-16 against Houston and heard boos on the way out the door.

He seemed unfazed by the treatment, telling reporters after Game 4, “(the booing) is nothing new.” But something was different about his reaction to the sweep.

Unlike past setbacks in October, Judge was more clinical than emotional this time.

He said goodbye to reporters one by one, often using the past tense in his parting lines:

“It was fun, wasn’t it?”

“We had some good times.”

“I’m sure we’ll see each other down the road.”

The phrasing could’ve meant nothing or else it conformed with Judge’s determination that his work is done here.

He oversaw the ascent of the Baby Bombers in 2017, took them as far as he could and now sees the coming crash.

Maybe Judge considers the boos a foreshadowing of what’s ahead in 2023.

If so, it might already be too late for Steinbrenner’s checkbook to save the day.