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Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees got their AL championship rings this week ahead of a rematch in Los Angeles with the team that prevented them from winning their first title since 2009.
The Los Angeles Dodgers dismantled the Yankees in a five-game set that was a little closer than the 4-1 final count might suggest. Still, the Yankees came up short, and most of them don't want a ring to commemorate that. Judge said plainly via MLB.com:
"All I really think is, ‘We lost.' We could break it down from Game 1 all the way through, but it comes down to, we didn’t get the job done. That’s what really matters, and how you learn from it and try to be a better player from it.”
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Aaron Boone, Yankees manager from 2018 to present, had a slightly different take on it:
“We want that first place one. At the same time, it is important to acknowledge that we were American League champions. That’s important. That matters.”
Judge added that getting to the World Series but falling short will stick with him and his teammates "forever."
Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton delivers stern message over AL Championship rings
Aaron Judge isn't the only Yankees star unhappy with the AL champion rings. Giancarlo Stanton, who hasn't played since that World Series, echoed his sentiment. He added a message to his teammates as well.
Via MLB.com, he told them:
“This isn’t the one we wanted, boys. The one that we want is in front of us. I’d better not see any of you guys wearing these around.”
Anthony Volpe said he tried to decline the ring but couldn't, so he gave it to his dad. He admitted that it could serve as a commemoration of the journey they went on last year, which was a good one despite how it ended.
Meanwhile, Carlos Rodon said it meant that they were "first losers," and Clarke Schmidt called them participation trophies.
"I don’t want to walk around with this runner-up or second-place ring from when I was with the Yankees, looking back and saying, ‘That was my shining moment,'" Schmitd said. "That’s just the standard here. We’re trying to win the World Series -- every single year."
The Yankees currently own the second-best record in the AL behind the Detroit Tigers as they begin a three-game rematch set with the Dodgers in LA this Friday.
