Steve Webb
LOS ANGELES, CA — In the wake of the monumental faceplant in the 2022 postseason, many Dodger fans and and Dodger insiders have come up with numerous things for Andrew Friedman to put on his “to-do” list for this coming off-season. However, there is one theory out there that to me doesn’t amount to much more than “fan fiction”: the landing of prized free agent slugger Aaron Judge. It is a tantalizing possibility. To think of another 50-60 homers added to the Dodgers’ already potent lineup. You could move Mookie Betts back to second base, shift Lux to short, and let Trea Turner walk. The whole thing is like a rotisserie league wet dream. Thing is, I’m not buying. And here’s the reason why: Freddie Freeman.
It’s not that I think Freddie Freeman and Judge would be incompatible teammates. Quite the contrary. Everybody around them says that these are two of the quality guys in the game today. No, I think they’d get along just fine. The reason I bring up the name of Freeman is that I think that the Dodgers’ first baseman’s story, and Judge’s have too many parallels for Judge to land in LA.
Let’s first get a brief recap of how Freeman came to be a Dodger. After Atlanta won the World Series in 2021, it was obvious that Freeman wanted to sign a lucrative deal with the only team he’s ever known, the Atlanta Braves. Freeman was coming off a great year, and just one season removed from an MVP campaign, so he was looking for Atlanta to pony up a big contract, not just for what he would do for the team, but in appreciation for what he had already done.
When, for whatever reason, it didn’t happen and the Braves traded for Matt Olson, Freeman was obviously hurt. So what did he do? He came home. He basically fell into the the Dodgers’ lap because Freddie and his young family wanted to be closer to the Freeman home base down in Orange County. If Freeman had been from Seattle, he could have just as easily been a Mariner. But he wasn’t, and the Dodgers reaped the benefit of that geographic coincidence.
In Judge, you have very much the same dynamic at play. He obviously wants to be a Yankee for life. And, regardless of the Yankee fans’ boos in the NLCS, he is a very popular player in that city. And basically put the team on his back and carried them to 99 wins this year. So, my man Aaron is going to get paid. The only question is by whom?
If talks with the Yankees break down and a deal can’t be struck, Judge will certainly be crestfallen. And who better to salve his broken heart than Farhan Zaidi with a big pot of cash? It makes all the sense in the world. The Giants have already put the game on notice that they will be big players in the free agent market this year. Their roster is in dire need of some star power, and who better than the kid who grew up a Giant fan in nearby Linden, CA, just a couple of hours from Oracle Park? It all makes just too much sense.
This is not to say the Dodgers won’t sign Judge. Andrew Friedman pulled a rabbit out of a hat in three straight off-seasons with Betts, Bauer, and Freeman. And, to be honest, I didn’t think he’d pull off any of those deals either. So yes, I underestimate the Dodgers’ Chief at my own peril. He might just do it.
But this time around, there are a lot of cards stacked against him. If he gets into a bidding war with the Giants’, Zaidi is in a much better position to pay stupid money to obtain Judge’s services. That’s not the Dodgers’ way. They’ll take a Betts or Freeman if they get the opportunity, sure. But Friedman knows now that big contracts to star players don’t necessarily translate into postseason success.
It’s a lesson he’s had to learn the hard way.
