Hal Steinbrenner on Aaron Judge: "As far as I'm concerned you are not a free agent. As far as I'm concerned you are a Yankee"

Re-signing Aaron Judge to the New York Yankees brought both joy and relief to the fanbase. After a disappointing finish to the year, the Yankees were in need of a star signing. Judge will be called upon to lead the team in 2023 as they go in search of their first World Series in 14 years.

The Yankees signed Judge to a nine-year, $360 million contract earlier this month. Hal Steinbrenner deserves a great deal of credit for closing one of the most important contracts in franchise history. The Yankees owner revealed his bold statement to Judge at the time of negotiations and how he viewed the outfielder’s place in the organization.

"As far as I'm concerned you are not a free agent. As far as I'm concerned you are a Yankee."

Aaron Judge is considered to be the leader of this team both on and off the field. His offense carried this team to the playoffs. The Yankees were desperate to re-sign the 2022 American League MVP to a long-term deal.

Judge’s contract is the largest annual contract for a positional player in MLB history.

Hal Steinbrenner to Aaron Judge before he signed: "As far as I'm concerned you are not a free agent. As far as I'm concerned you are a Yankee." - Talkin' Yanks

Throughout the season, Judge expressed a desire to return to New York. During the regular season, the organization made several attempts to sign him but had little success.

Judge quickly turned down a seven-year, $213.5 million offer from Hal Steinbrenner prior to the season. Instead, he decided to bet on himself and finish the 2022 season. That bet appears to have paid off.

Aaron Judge went on to have one of the best offensive seasons in baseball history. Judge led the league in almost every major offensive category, including home runs, RBIs, runs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage. He went on to break Roger Maris' single-season home run record of 61.

Aaron Judge was crowned the 2022 AL MVP after a record-breaking season

Aaron Judge runs onto the field prior to game three of the ALCS at Yankee Stadium

The San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers were both rumored to be interested in signing Judge this offseason.

For New York Yankees fans, there was concern that Judge’s time in the Bronx was coming to an end. A last-minute deal by Steinbrenner convinced him to return.

"Congrats @TheJudge44!!! Well deserved honor." - Derek Jeter

Judge has spent his entire career with the Yankees and has now committed to the team for the next nine years. It is expected that he will be named team captain. If Judge can repeat his 2022 numbers, the Yankees will have a good chance to make a World Series run next season.