Yankees’ Aaron Judge talks Mets’ Juan Soto’s playoff belief

New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge thinks the Yankees have a better chance of winning the World Series than their crosstown rivals, the New York Mets. 

Judge, 32, was asked about his former teammate, Juan Soto, and Soto’s apparent conclusion that he had a better chance to win with the Mets than the Yankees. 

“That’s his opinion. He can say what he wants. I definitely disagree with him. I wasn’t too surprised by it, I think that’s where he wanted to be,” Judge said to reporters on Monday during a press conference. 

Soto signed a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million contract with the Mets this offseason. If Soto opts out after the fifth year of his contract, the Mets can void it by making the total value of the contract $805 million. 

“The Mets are a great organization and what they have done in the past couple of year showing the ability to keep winning, to keep growing a team, to try and grow a dynasty, is one of the most important things,” Soto said when asked why he chose to sign with the Mets in free agency.

Soto’s deal is the richest contract in the history of professional sports, and Judge said Monday he is happy for his former teammate.

“I think that’s where is best for him and his family. He got a pretty nice deal over there, you can’t say no that. But I’m happy for him, he got a good deal. He’s going to be in a great spot. It’s going to be great having him in town. We are going to be battling back and forth for quite a few years. I’m definitely happy for him,” Judge said. 

Judge and Soto were the big leagues’ best duo last season. 

Judge won the American League MVP after clubbing a league high 58 home runs and driving in the most runs in baseball (144) while maintaining a sparkling .322 batting average.

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Soto finished third in the AL MVP race, as he had the best season of his career while hitting in front of Judge. 

Soto hit a career high 41 home runs and hit .288, while getting on base at a .419 clip. 

Judge knows it is impossible to replace Soto, but he likes what the Yankees have done to make up for his loss. 

“Soto is one-of-a-kind man, he’s a special player. Excited for him and his new chapter with the Mets, but we added a lot of new pieces here, starting with (Cody) Bellinger and (Paul) Goldschmidt. Two guys that are former MVP’s, guys that are still wanting to improve, still want to get better,” Judge said. 

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“They are going to add such a different dynamic to this team. It really lengthens our whole lineup when you have those guys batting in the middle of your order a lot of good things are going to happen. You can’t replace a guy like Juan Soto, but you bring in guys like this that are All Star, MVP caliber players.”

The Yankees acquired Bellinger in a trade with the Chicago Cubs and signed Goldschmidt to a one-year deal in free agency. 

Bellinger won the 2019 NL MVP with the Los Angeles Dodgers and has spent the last two seasons with the Cubs.

Bellinger hit .266 and hit 18 home runs with the Cubs last season, and he plays a strong centerfield. 

Goldschmidt won the NL MVP in 2022 but struggled last season as he got off a slow start before bouncing back. He hit .245 with 22 home runs in 154 games last season. 

Those two will be tasked with replacing the hole Soto left in the Yankees lineup, as they try to make it back to the World Series after losing to the Dodgers in five games. 

Soto will be relied upon to anchor the Mets lineup alongside Francisco Lindor, as the Mets have World Series aspirations after a surprise run to the NLCS last season. 

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