As the Yankees opened the 2022 Major League Baseball season Friday, all eyes were on Aaron Judge -- but not for anything he did on the field.
In separate sessions with reporters, Judge and then Yankees general manager Brian Cashman revealed they had been unable to reach an agreement on a long-term contract. Without significant concessions from either the player or the team, it is all but certain that before Judge tests the free-agent market in the fall. And he will then find himself in a familiar position: the spotlight.
That's nothing new.