Barry Bonds: "I hope he [Aaron Judge] signs here...we would love to have him"

San Francisco Giants star Barry Bonds expressed that he would love to see New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge play for the Giants next season.

In an exclusive interview with Sportico, Bonds expressed his wish to see Judge from his seat at Oracle Park, saying:

“I hope he signs here. Can it happen? I don’t know. It depends on what the Yankee payroll is. But we would love to have him, I’ll tell you that.”

“We in the Bay Area—he’s a Bay Area boy—we hope they don’t sign him, and we can get him,” Bonds said. “I would. He’s that good.”

In the offseason, the Yankees said they will try to re-sign Judge. They could undoubtedly afford him, as could the Giants.

Bonds expressly stated that he doesn't have any input on signing or trading for players. He serves as an independent contractor for the Giants in an honorary capacity.

"It’s a great day for #SFGOpeningDay @SFGiants" – Barry L Bonds

Bonds is the team's largest supporter and an all-time leader with 762 home runs.

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Barry Bonds and Aaron Judge are natives of the Bay Area

Bonds, the late Giants outfielder Bobby Bonds' son, was raised farther out of the old Candlestick Park on the Peninsula.

Judge's hometown is in the Stockton region 90 minutes east of San Francisco. He was nine years old when Bonds broke Mark McGwire's three-year-old single-season record of 70 home runs.

"Barry Bonds on Aaron Judge: 'I hope he signs here'" - KNBR

Judge hit 62 home runs in all during the season, only 11 shy of Bonds' record. He lost to the Houston Astros in the American League Championship Series, ending his chances of winning the World Series. He still has a ton of time in his career to surpass Bonds' mark and take home the World Series trophy.

Championship Series - Houston Astros v New York Yankees - Game Four

Aaron Judge has already surpassed Roger Maris' 1961 American League record of 61. While his quest for record-dominated news coverage the entire season, his impending free agency was a major talking point.