Around the Empire: Yankees news - 12/16/22

MLB Trade Rumors | Anthony Franco: Carlos Rodón is a Yankee! The left-hander agreed to a six-year, $162 million contract with a full no-trade clause. The move gives the Yankees arguably the most talented rotation in the game, and if the books are now closed on the offseason, it’s been a strong run for Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman

MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Now that Aaron Judge is staying in the Bronx for (probably) the rest of his career, one of the immediate questions is whether the Yankees will decide to make him the team’s next captain. The “C” has gone unworn since Derek Jeter retired, and the decision to name a new one rests entirely with managing partner Hal Steinbrenner. Still, more than one current Yankee think Judge is deserving of the honor and would kick off the next chapter in the Aaron Judge story.

New York Post | Jaclyn Hendricks: The aforementioned last captain of the Yankees linked up with former Giants QB Eli Manning yesterday, discussing among other things the pressures of NYC media. Jeter specifically remarked on the value of biting your tongue when you get caught up in media circles, and given how well he handled his time as the face of baseball, it comes off as sage advice.

FanGraphs | Ben Clemens: The big trend in this offseason has been the length of deals handed out, with teams willing to stick an extra year or two on virtually every free agent contract to lower AAV. The financial benefits to teams go beyond the lowered average value though, taking advantage of expected future inflation to lower their real monetary costs as well.

NJ.com | Pete Caldera: After Judge’s deal, the Yankees now have three $300 million contracts on the books. Although Hal Steinbrenner says he doesn’t have a number in mind for what he wants the final payroll to be, we’ve seen the club behave in a stop-and-start way with large contracts, bringing on one at a time only to pause for a season or two. It’s possible that pressure from the Mets or Padres’ spending sprees might have carried over to the Yankees’ winter, with Judge and Rodón now earning a combined $522 million in commitments from Steinbrenner this offseason alone.

Baseball Prospectus | Smith Brickner: (subscription required) BP has released their top ten list of Yankees prospects, and you’ll be unsurprised to hear that Anthony Volpe remains at the top. The scouting report on Volpe stays about the same as it’s been for a year: a potential perennial All-Star on the infield that has no one elite tool but also no weaknesses. BP gives some shine to a few upper-minors arms in the system as well, with right-handers Randy Vasquez and Will Warren looking interesting heading into 2023.