Around the Empire: Yankees news - 4/1/22

New York Post | Andrew Marchand: Say goodbye to games on Pix11, and say hello to games on Amazon Prime. In addition to a handful of Friday night games that will be available only on Apple TV, the New York Yankees will play 21 games that will be available in the tristate area only on Amazon Prime. These games will feel very similar to the YES Network broadcasts, as just like the old Pix11 games, they will use the YES Network team; it’s only the method of distribution that is different. Most of these games — but not all — are expected to be on Friday nights, with the first one expected to be on April 22nd.

This move comes as part of Major League Baseball’s new partnerships with online streaming services — in addition to Friday Night Baseball and the Yankees’ Amazon partnership, there will also be Sunday afternoon games on NBC’s streaming service, Peacock, although those details have yet to be announced.

New York Post | Dan Martin: As we inch closer to Opening Day, Aaron Judge’s deadline for signing an extension comes ever closer. While he refused to speculate all too much about his teammate’s impending free agency, Gerrit Cole appears confident that the two sides will get a deal done, saying that “when the Yankees want somebody and their back is up against the wall, if Hal wants to get it done, he gets it done.” For their part, neither Judge nor general manager Brian Cashman provided any details on their negotiation, beyond the right fielder’s continued insistence on a deadline.

WFAN Sports | Ryan Chichester: Speaking of Judge’s deadline, old Pinstripe Alley writer Ryan Chichester recounted Jon Heyman’s comments about the negotiations on MLB Network’s Hot Stove last night. According to Heyman, the Yankees offered their homegrown superstar a deal with an AAV upwards of $30 million over the weekend. He also guesses that the deal is for six to seven years, taking him through his age-37 season, noting that the team’s main concern is not wanting to approach the length of Mike Trout’s and Mookie Betts’ 12-year extensions out in Los Angeles. honestly, that shouldn’t be a surprise, since Trout and Betts were just entering their age-27 seasons, while Judge is entering his age-30 year.

ESPN: Speaking to The Athletic the other day, Brian Cashman fought back against reality, saying that the Yankees’ World Series drought should come with an asterisk because “The only thing that stopped [the 2017 Yankees] was something that was so illegal and horrific.” Yea, because it’s not the pitchers’ fault that the Yankees scored just three runs in four games while in Houston.

Really, Cashman comes off really bad here, sounding more like a high schooler dealing with a bad break-up when he follows up “I’m past it” with “It does bother me when it comes up.” And considering the imminent release of the letter that allegedly implicates the Yankees in sign stealing, well ... perhaps now wasn’t the time to bring this up.