2022 was a significant year in Aaron Judge's career as he signed a nine-year contract with the Yankees. But fans recently got to know that it was a prior phone call that added the ninth year to Judge's contract, and expressed their thoughts about it.

The 34-year-old revealed the story of how the Yankees chairman, Hal Steinbrenner, granted his ninth-year wish during his appearance on the July 9, 2024, episode of the Casa De Klub podcast posted by Dank on X. Judge mentioned that it was his wife, Samantha Bracksieck, who influenced him to express his wish to Steinbrenner when he was in a dilemma.

He said, "Conversations in New York really weren't going anywhere. She was like, ‘Just call Hal. Just call them up. Tell them how you're feeling. Tell them what you think.’” Well, the contact that Bracksieck suggested ended up adding the ardently desired ninth year to Judge's contract.

Judge stated that he obeyed his wife's suggestion and explained his position to Steinbrenner over a call. He quoted himself, saying,

"We call him, and I'm laying it out there. ‘Hey, I don't want to go anywhere. This is where I want to be. If you can just add one more year to the deal. I'm set. I'm not looking for anything more. I just want one more year.'"

The 34-year-old's subsequent comments implied that Steinbrenner agreed to his proposal far more easily than he had expected. Judge said, "He's like, ‘That's it? All right, done. Sounds good.’" But that wasn't the only good news he received on the call.

Judge quoted Steinbrenner further saying, "Then all of a sudden, he's like, ‘Oh, by the way, we're also going to make you the next Yankee captain. I see you fit right in line with Jeter, Munson, all these guys.’”

Besides confessing that the experience left him speechless, Judge also mentioned, "It was just special. It meant a lot."

Judge's entire revelation was relayed by a recent X update by dank, which garnered lots of attention from fans, many of whom also expressed their opinions about the incident.

What did fans say about Aaron Judge's revelation related to the ninth year in his contract?

On X, lots of fans expressed positive thoughts about Judge's revelation, with one of them appreciating the Yankees' management's decision to retain him. The fan mentioned,

"The thought of Judge being traded makes me sick - A generational player with no real help. What are the Yankees - the LA Angels with Trout."

Another fan appreciated Judge's decision, stating, "So he really sat there and said, 'Nah, i’ll take less money but only if you make me captain' - bold move honestly." One more lauded Judge overall, commenting, "Pure class act, and that’s why New York loves him."

But there were a few who weren't so positive about various points of the deal. One of them stated, "You Are Not Captain Material… Great Player Yes but Captain Nope!!"

Another one said, "Too bad he s**** when it matters most lmao."

Well, regardless of what the fans said, what do you think? Was the decision to add the ninth year to Judge's contract nd make him the captain a worthy one?

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Written by

Souvik Roy

Edited by

Kaamna Dwivedi