New York will have some exciting baseball in store for the 2023 MLB season, something San Francisco can’t quite promise just yet.
The Giants’ efforts to make a free-agency splash were outdone by the two clubs separated by the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge -- the New York Yankees and the New York Mets. Aaron Judge will retire in pinstripes, and Carlos Correa will spend the next dozen years as a Met.
Not only did Giants fans wake up to reports of Correa agreeing to a 12-year, $315 million contract with the Mets, but they had about 10 seconds to process the news before being reminded of their other offseason failure. Judge formalized his nine-year, $360 million contract Wednesday morning at Yankee Stadium.
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SIGN UP HERE After expressing how excited he was to be back in the Bronx, Judge reacted to the Correa news.
“It's exciting news. I found out this morning,” Judge said on MLB Network. “New York is the best place to play. I think he knows that, and he values going out and winning and being in a winning culture, a winning organization.
“The Mets are building a winning team over there. They’ve got some great pieces, they’ve got a good young core of guys and have some guys locked up for quite a long time. I think Carlos will like playing in New York, that’s for sure.”
Correa was a physical away from becoming a San Francisco Giant after both parties reportedly agreed to a 13-year, $350 million contract last week. San Francisco flagged something in the star shortstop's physical, though, and the reported deal was put on pause.
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But Correa's agent, Scott Boras, took over the remote and pushed play.
RELATED: Boras claims Giants had 'reasonable time' to finish Correa deal
Boras said they gave the Giants "reasonable time" to finish the deal, but too much time had passed, and Boras began negotiations with other teams. Seven days after reportedly agreeing to terms with San Francisco -- even going so far as to change his Twitter cover photo to Oracle Park -- Correa is a Met.
The Giants and their fans, who were ready to bring an MLB star to the Bay, witnessed two potential candidates walk away from the organization in a two-week span.
Where the Giants go from here is unknown, but it's safe to say their 2023 season opener against the Yankees and their four-game series against the Mets later in April in San Francisco will be interesting for all involved.
