Back in The Bronx this week for the first time since the Yankees traded him to the Angels last offseason, Tyler Wade had dinner with his close friend, Aaron Judge, on Monday night.
So, on Tuesday, while Wade was talking about how much he has come to enjoy playing for the Angels, he was asked if he let Judge know the same thing in case the Yankees star and pending free agent has a decision to make next offseason.
“You never know, I might have planted a couple seeds,” Wade said with a big grin before the Yankees and Angels played at the Stadium. “But you never know. He’s having a great year, I’m happy for him. He deserves everything that’s coming to him. What he does on the field and off the field, it’s special and you can’t replicate that.”
Yankees’ Aaron Judge rounds third base to score on an RBI double by Anthony Rizzo during the first inning of a game against the Angels. AP
The Angels’ Tyler Wade reacts in the dugout after hitting a home run against the Blue Jays. Getty ImagesJudge, who is in the midst of an MVP-caliber season, turned down a seven-year, $213.5 million extension offer from the Yankees before Opening Day. Betting on himself has looked like a smart choice so far. He entered Tuesday batting .309 with a 1.044 OPS and an MLB-best 18 home runs.
Wade, whom the Yankees drafted three rounds after Judge in 2013, was traded to the Angels in November after being designated for assignment.
“That’s the only team I’ve known for nine years and the relationships I’ve built in New York and the people I know in that clubhouse and the staff and everybody, it’s bittersweet,” said Wade, a southern California native. “But the people in this clubhouse, it’s unbelievable the way I’m treated here. It’s the closest thing to that [the Yankees], if not better. I’m blessed enough to have been in two great organizations and a great ballclub as well.”
