Aaron Judge's one-word response says it all about Yankees' role in WBC decision

Participation in the World Baseball Classic is fraught in New York after what happened to New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz in the 2023 edition. It's a wildly exciting exhibition with countries pitted against one another for pride and supremacy, but it is an exhibition, at the end of the day. Whether we're talking about freak accidents or additional miles on the odometer (or time away from spring training), you can see why the Yankees might be hesitant to give team captain Aaron Judge the go-ahead for 2026.

That's why he didn't ask.

Judge was a notably strange absence from the 2023 World Baseball Classic field. It didn't feel glaring until the action was actually underway, but once the games played out and the intensity ratcheted up, it was definitely natural to say, "Where's all the pitching? And, wait, where are all the Yankees?"

That won't happen in 2026's edition, though, which culminates in Houston at Daikin Park, the site of many notable Judge eyerolls over the years. He was bestowed with the Captain role on Monday, and announced at Yankee Stadium - with manager Mark DeRosa by his side - that he accepted the honor without outside counsel. No, the Yankees didn't factor in.

Yankees' Aaron Judge made his own decision to captain Team USA in World Baseball Classic, didn't let the team interfere

It's Judge's decision to make. It took him eight full seasons to reach the World Series and put the first team honorific on his future Hall of Fame plaque. As uncertainty lingers about when his next chance to prove himself will be, he took a leadership position that was bestowed upon him, and could help open the door to changing his current "under the lights" narrative on a plainly laid-out schedule.

Who wouldn't accept that risk, given the potential reward?

As for how Judge foresees WBC ramp-up impacting his offseason, he gave a bit more sly of an answer, indicating that he doesn't plan on slowing down at all.

Now, the ball is in Judge's court. Is this lip service, or an action plan?

The Yankees will feel much better about his off-schedule Team USA participation if he delivers on the franchise's ultimate goal first. He may not have run his decision by them first, but he probably workshopped that line in the clubhouse a little bit.