The New York Yankees are postseason-bound for the ninth time over the past 10 years after earning an 8-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Monday. The Yankees are also in the middle of a 34-year winning season streak, and during that span, they've only missed the postseason seven times. Suffice to say, the standards for baseball are as high as it can get in the Bronx — which is music to Aaron Judge's ears.

Judge entered free agency after the 2022 MLB season, following the Yankees' sweep in the ALCS at the hands of the Houston Astros. The San Francisco Giants did everything in their power to convince him to sign for a team based somewhere close to his hometown in Linden, California, which made it seem as though Judge was a legitimate flight risk.

But in the end, Judge decided to sign a nine-year, $360 million contract to stay with the Yankees because he believed that the franchise's World Series or bust mentality will bear fruit someday in the form of silverware.

“Why I came back to New York in 2023 is to get an opportunity to win a World Series every single year. We got a special group here, special guys that are playing for each other, we just continue to get better. Excited to get back to the postseason. We're gonna celebrate tonight but we know what's ahead of us. We got a lot of work to do,” Judge told Meredith Marakovits of YES Network during their locker room celebrations.

Article Continues Below

Indeed, the Yankees may not have won a World Series title since 2009, but the fact that they put up winning campaigns year after year means that they're in the running for a title every season as well. Meanwhile, the Giants have missed the postseason in each of the past five seasons.

It's safe to say that Judge made the right decision to stay with the Yankees. Only time will tell, however, if they finally manage to break through.