The Yankees and Aaron Judge cannot agree on what the slugger is worth, in terms of moolah and years. Yet the Bombers’ bottom line does not include what his value is to the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network.
When Brian Cashman and his crew are crunching the numbers on Judge, they don’t quantify how he impacts the TV ratings. Or cable, satellite and streaming subscriptions, as well as advertising sales. The overall philosophy is winning drives viewership and YES’ bottom line. Cashman’s concern is winning a World Series and doing it within the budget set by Hal Steinbrenner.
Yet, the Judge side of the aisle would make a case for the giant outfielder bringing tremendous value to YES. And how his departure from the Bombers would negatively impact YES, which the Yankees own 26% of.
While the Yankees have other star players, like Giancarlo Stanton and Gerrit Cole, Judge is a superstar who transcends the game. Rob Manfred sprinkled more glitter on that star when he referred to Judge as “the face” of baseball. So, Aunt Tillie, the casual baseball fan, knows who Judge is. These casual fans are more likely to tune into YES to see Judge step to the plate. Casual fans drive viewership. They can be the difference between healthy ratings and hefty ratings.
A team can’t manufacture a superstar.
Judge reached that plateau naturally through his performance, leadership and personality, which at times can be prickly. That’s part of an appealing/intriguing “home grown” package. It’s why YES’ cameras follow and focus on him (especially in the dugout, which he doesn’t like) more than any other Yankee player. When YES’ cameras zoom in on Judge, in the field or at bat, they create an anticipatory feeling that something is going to happen. It brings juice to YES telecasts that are often three+ hour slogs.
Who brings that aura to YES if Judge leaves the Bronx?
Who does YES highlight in its video openings if Judge splits?
It could be argued that Judge is YES’ biggest star. He helps generate more viewership than Nets superstars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. This comes at a time when the NBA is a more popular sport than baseball.
If Judge is to eventually depart, he’s not going to leave YES before providing major storylines (and fireworks) the rest of this season. All YES voices should dig into (unless orders have been sent from the top down) Judge’s contract controversy. It’s an electric topic that could be percolating for months.
Then there’s the lead-up to the first week in May when the Yankees visit Toronto. If Judge is unvaccinated and can’t make the trip into Canada, he will create more controversial content for YES’ Bombers telecasts.
When July rolls around, and the trade deadline (anywhere between July 28 and Aug. 3) approaches, YES voices can join in on the speculation (If no deal is done) about Judge being traded. More intrigue courtesy of the Judge.
Only on YES. At least for one more season.
WHERE’S RECKER?
John Smoltz is no longer with the MLB Network because he declined to get vaccinated for COVID-19.
Paul O’Neill won’t get vaccinated either but he still works YES telecasts from his Ohio home.
Could Anthony Recker, who frequently appears on SNY’s “Baseball Night in New York” and the Mets pre and postgame shows be following his brother analysts’ No-Jab policy? Could he too have declined to get vaccinated?
Recker, the former Mets catcher, has not been seen on either show in a month. And the commercials for SNY’s Mets studio shows now feature regulars Gary Apple, Todd Zeile and newbie, former Mets reliever, Jerry Blevins.
Recker is nowhere to be found. As evidenced on his BNNY appearances, Recker can sometimes be stubborn and strong-willed. Perhaps he’s taking some sort of stand (we call it Going Kyrie) on this vaccination situation. A stand that may have cost him his gig.
STEADY STREAM OF BASEBALL
There is one thing for certain as the 2022 NBA playoffs unfold: every single game will be televised on an ESPN or Turner Sports affiliated broadcast or cable platform. ESPN and Turner are the exclusive national TV partners of the league.
It shows how much value, compared to their relationship with Major League Baseball, the two outlets put in the NBA. In 2021 when ESPN/Turner both renewed their Major League Baseball broadcast packages (with slightly revised programming) they had no qualms about leaving the door wide open for streaming services to crash the party.
Neither ESPN or Turner cared enough to block out streaming services from MLB’s Friday night or Sunday morning/afternoon windows. And since Fox, MLB’s third network partner, has no entertainment or sports streaming platform, ESPN and Turner left the window open. Now Apple and Peacock have jumped into the space (Amazon will also stream 21 exclusive Yankees games) and it’s no mystery where this is all heading.
The streamers footprint in baseball will only grow and while the postseason may be out of sight for the next five or six years, their reach into the sport of baseball may ultimately expand right up to the World Series.
THIS ROSE (INTERVIEW) STINKS
No one should be surprised that Knicks prez Leon Rose sat down “exclusively” with Dolan TV’s (aka MSG Network) Minister of Information, Mike Breen, for his first interview since September.
This was business as usual for James (Guitar Jimmy) Dolan and his crew. Traditionally, Garden mouths have been told to keep shut. And if you’re going to “open up,” do it in a controlled environment.
Would we be shocked if Rose actually had advance knowledge of Breen’s questions? Absolutely not. When the interviewer and the subject of the interview work for the same boss, who also owns the network, you can’t help but smell a strong odor of home cooking.
AROUND THE DIAL
Long before Gerrit Cole said he was frustrated over his Opening Day start against Boston being delayed, YES’ David Cone speculated (in the first inning), the reason the Yankees’ pitcher was hit hard early had everything to do with being “out of his normal rhythm.” YES aired a video replay of Cole, in the dugout, screaming at whoever would listen to get the game started. What you had here was YES crafting an excuse for Cole BEFORE he even concocted it. … Alex Rodriguez, David Ortiz, Roger Clemens all on the same telecast. Until further notice, the first episode of ESPN’s KayRod Cast will be known for this historic gathering of three PED cheats. The best thing we can say about the KayRod Cast’s debut? At least it didn’t suck. … Kudos to FAN’s Craig Carton/Evan Roberts for focusing on the Brooklyn Subway shooting during their Tuesday show. Their sports talk competition, ESPN-98.7′s “The Michael Kay Show,” mentioned the shooting before segueing into all-sports mode. Did the Trio Grande (DLG, Kay, Rosenberg) make this lame decision themselves. Or did it come down from on high? … After further research, and help from people who know more than we do (that’s most of the Free World), it has become apparent that an old video of Kiner’s Korner, is nearly impossible to find. Or of such poor quality it wouldn’t be of any use to SNY’s new app. … During Sunday’s Mets-Nats telecast, SNY’s Ron Darling said Montreal was one of his favorite cities to go to when he was a player. “The only thing I didn’t like,” he said on the air, “was going through Customs.” Why? Did he have something to hide? Like a bottle of wine or something?
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DUDE OF THE WEEK: JOEY VOTTO
Sure glad someone at ESPN knew that miking the Reds slugger for the season opener in Atlanta would produce a TV performance worthy of an Emmy nomination. The Votto audio was entertaining. What a novel concept. More of this, please.
DWEEB OF THE WEEK: CAM NEWTON
Here’s a guy who was a No. 1 overall draft pick, a star quarterback, a league MVP who led his team to the Super Bowl. Now, Newton decides it’s a swell idea to behave like a sexist on a podcast. Let it go, man. Your own view on a woman’s role don’t need to be heard or shared.
DOUBLE TALK
What Aaron Boone said: “He [Isiah Kiner-Falefa] will settle in and be the quality-of-contact guy he is.”
What Aaron Boone meant to say: “I wish he would actually start getting on base.”
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