Coming into the Major League Baseball offseason, the defending American League champion New York Yankees needed to address several areas in order to finish the job it failed to do in 2024. One, arguably the most important, was the first base situation.
No team in all of baseball saw worse production from the first base position than the Yankees last season. So, New York went out and added a former MVP — Paul Goldschmidt — to slot into the role. The now ex-St. Louis Cardinal signed a one-year, $12.5 million contract with the Yankees, aiming to win a World Series ring for the first time in his career.
It’s important to note that he took less money to join the Bronx ball club, contrasting how Juan Soto made his free agency decision.
In his introductory press conference today, Goldschmidt took the time to shower his new teammate Aaron Judge with praise. His presence and pure dominance of the game over the last few years were unquestionably key reasons as to why the four-time Gold Glover opted to depart St. Louis for one of, if not the biggest markets in all of sports.
I mean, who doesn’t want to play with Judge? The opportunity was impossible for Goldschmidt to pass up.
“You know, I don’t know him extremely well, it’s not like we’ve played together. But I got the opportunity to meet him and stay in touch with him, and I know it was written how we got together a few years ago and hit,” Goldschmidt said, according to YES Network. “That’s something I’ve always tried to do, find great hitters or great players and coaches, and just try to seek them out and try to learn from them. So that was great.
“A few years ago, him and I were able to meet up for a day, have lunch, hit together. A few other guys were there, LeMahieu was there, so that was great. And then we’ve just stayed in touch. He’s one of the best hitters in the world, maybe the best hitter. And as a right-handed power hitter, a guy that I’m very very excited to play with and get to see him work every day … he is just one of the best.”
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) January 2, 2025
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With Judge, who took home the AL MVP award for the second time last season, by Goldschmidt’s side, Yankee fans are hoping he can experience much more consistent production at the plate compared to last season in the Midwest.
It’s not a bad idea to link up with the best right-handed hitter in today’s game if you’re looking to find your swing again. The glowing review of Judge by such a respected player like Goldschmidt says a lot. He sees the vision in New York and with the three-time AL home run leader serving as the captain, the Yankees are primed to contend once again within a much weaker AL.
Remember, while he is aging, Goldschmidt has won an MVP award in the last five years. In fact, if you count the addition of Cody Bellinger via trade from the Chicago Cubs, New York will have four former MVPs in its lineup to begin 2025.
New York seems like a perfect place for the 37-year-old to find his footing again at the plate late on in his career. Nothing against the Cardinals, but they don’t have “The Judge” himself. Not to mention one of the best one-two pitching punches in the majors. While we’re all still a bit skeptical and for good reasons, Goldschmidt is more than capable of being the average to slightly above-average first baseman the Yankees desperately craved last season.
