GM Aaron Judge's biggest mistake just resurfaced with Padres in sad fashion

When you get to superstar status in professional sports, you end up with special privileges, no matter how humble you are. New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge is one of the most mild-mannered, unassuming players in the game, despite his mountainous stature and monstrous performance.

But like LeBron James, New York Jets-era Aaron Rodgers, and a host of icons before him, his words hold weight when it comes to player acquisitions. Judge's feelings probably helped bring the Cody Bellinger standoff to a resolution this winter, and he was a prime reason Paul Goldschmidt became a Yankee in 2025, and ostensibly is the reason why the 38-year-old made his way back to New York this winter.

Brian Cashman is much-maligned among the fan base for some of his past errors, but should GM Judge be let off the hook for his own? Alex Verdugo signing a minor league deal with the Padres got us thinking.

Former Yankee Alex Verdugo's fall from grace is a black mark on Aaron Judge's pseudo-GM record

A former Los Angeles Dodgers top prospect, Verdugo is best known around the league as a member of the Boston Red Sox. He was never a star, but his contact-forward approach gave him a jack-of-all-trades kind of vibe.

Heading into 2024, New York had a vacancy in the outfield, and Judge had a plan to fix it: go out and get Verdugo.

“I’ve been preaching for years that we’ve got to get that guy,” Judge said during spring training in 2024. “He’s a gamer, he’s a competitor. He plays hard. I’ve seen him play through injuries; I know he was a little banged up even last year, he had a couple of things going on. But every single time we played them, he was out there hustling, doing his thing.”

Verdugo would last only one season with New York, and up to that point it was the worst showing of his career. He slashed just .233/.291/.356, as his contact skills eroded in what should have been the prime of his career.

Following his departure from the Bronx, Verdugo landed with the Atlanta Braves on a minor league deal. Jurickson Profar's PED suspension and Ronald Acuña Jr.'s progression back from a torn ACL presented him with a golden opportunity to revive his career.

Instead, Judge's prime target hit even worse with the Braves, posting a .239/.296/.289 line that earned him his release in early July. He'd remain without a team for the rest of the 2025 campaign.

Now he joins the Padres with little to no chance of making the big league roster. The 29-year-old is spring training fodder, a deep depth option, and nothing more. His career is on life support.

This is just the latest entry in all-world players trying their hand at running teams. It rarely works out. Judge's gaffe might not be as bad as Michael Jordan selecting Kwame Brown No. 1 overall, but it should be enough for Brian Cashman to take a minute and really think things through the next time the three-time MVP expresses his desires with regard to player acquisition ... unless it's Bryce Harper, of course (or another bonafide star).