Aaron Judge Addresses Yankees' Failure To Sign Machado, Harper Unlikely Also

The Manny Machado and Bryce Harper sweepstakes are heating up with the former now off the market after the shortstop reportedly agreed to a deal put on the table by the San Diego Padres worth $300 million over 10 years.

The New York Yankees were among the teams in the running for Machado, but in the end, it was new entrants Padres that got the deal over the line by meeting the player’s demands. The shortstop had met the Yankees along with the Philadelphia Phillies and the Chicago White Sox in December.

The New York franchise was installed as the favorites at the time, but later dropped down the pecking order when it became clear they will not open their checkbook and meet Machado’s demands. The 26-year-old was said to favor a move to the Yankees, but in the end, it was the dollars on offer that made the difference.

Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge was asked about his team’s failure to land the shortstop, while their chances of landing the other in-demand free agent Harper also seem almost negligible. He was not too concerned and believes the team has made the right additions in order to compete for the championship.

Judge had previously claimed he would change positions if the Yankees signed Harper, but is now certain that they have the squad capable of making a run to the World Series. He praised their winter additions Troy Tulowitzki, Adam Ottavino and DJ LeMahieu and admitted that he is excited going into the new season.

“The great thing about going into the offseason, the lineup and the team that we have is pretty darn good. We won 100 games. So we were in a position, I felt like, didn’t really need to go out there and grab too many big pieces,” Judge told reporters Tuesday from the George M. Steinbrenner Field, as quoted by NJ.com.

“The year before, we made it one game away from the World Series,” Judge added. "This past year, we made it to the postseason and lost in the DS. But we were just in a position to where we just had to add one or two key guys and bring back a couple key guys that were going to get us over the hump and I feel like we did that.”

“I’m excited for our team, I’m excited for who we added and I’m excited to get this thing going. I’m just excited, top to bottom, of what this team’s capable of.”

The Phillies have been installed as the favorites to land Harper in the coming weeks, but they will be expected to top Machado’s $300 million deal and may also have to beat the current record, which is Giancarlo Stanton’s 13-year $325 million deal signed with the Miami Marlins in 2014.