The New York Yankees have repeatedly failed to build a championship team around their MVP Aaron Judge.
Apr 19, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) hits an rbi single against the Tampa Bay Rays in the ninth inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge had another outstanding game on Tuesday, going 4-for-4 with a double and a run against the Cleveland Guardians and raising his batting line to an absurd .411/.509/.722 (254 OPS+).
However, the rest of the Yankees didn't do much. His teammates managed only two hits combined, resulting in a 3-2 loss in Cleveland.
Unfortunately, that's kind of been the story of Judge's career in New York. The Yankees have had him for a decade now, and what do they have to show for it?
He's already won two AL MVP awards and will likely win a third this year, but New York still hasn't won a World Series with him. There's only been one pennant and just one World Series game victory, which came last year against the Los Angeles Dodgers after the Dodgers essentially punted Game 4 at Yankee Stadium.
While Judge hasn't been amazing in the playoffs, that isn't his fault. It takes a team to win a title, and the Yankees' front office simply hasn't done enough to put championship-caliber teams around their superstar, similar to the Los Angeles Angels with Mike Trout.
Despite spending big on pitchers like Gerrit Cole and Max Fried, New York has repeatedly failed to give Judge a worthy sidekick in the lineup. Giancarlo Stanton has been constantly injured during his time in pinstripes, and Juan Soto left in free agency after only one season in the Bronx.
The Yankees have had plenty of chances to open their wallets and acquire another big-name slugger to pair with Judge, but they haven't landed any of them. At various points over the last few years, they could have signed Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Trea Turner, Corey Seager, Freddie Freeman, Matt Olson, Shohei Ohtani and others, but ended up with none of them.
If George Steinbrenner were still around, he surely would have landed at least one of those guys.
Instead, Hal and Brian Cashman have been content to surround Judge with aging veterans, mid-tier free agents and young, inexperienced players rather than blow open the payroll, forcing him to carry much of the offensive burden by himself.
He can do it, because he's a modern-day Babe Ruth, but imagine if he had his own Lou Gehrig? Maybe the last few Octobers would have turned out differently.
Judge is about to turn 33, and he won't keep hitting like this forever. Father Time is undefeated, and bigger players like him (i.e., Stanton) tend to break down eventually. His prime probably won't last much longer.
There's still time to capitalize on his generational talent, but it's running out. With all of its injuries, New York probably isn't going to win the World Series this year, making 2026 a more realistic possibility.
But if the Yankees want to get over the hump, they need to be aggressive, go all-in and get Judge some help while he's still a force in the middle of the lineup.
If they don't win a championship with him, they'll have no one to blame but themselves.
