Decorated Yankees Legend Once Helped Rookie Aaron Judge Make #99 Iconic With Stern Advice

Aaron Judge is one of the biggest superstars in baseball right now. Over the years, he has developed his play and leadership skills while becoming the face of the New York Yankees. Furthermore, he is now the team’s newest captain as well. Judge has developed some iconic characteristics that most baseball fans would recognize him for, his power-hitting ability being one of them.

But one of the most iconic things about Judge is his jersey number. The Yankee star has worn #99 his whole career but was once in doubt over it. In fact, a retired Yankee legend had to convince Judge to keep #99 as his jersey number.

New York Yankees legend CC Sabathia convinced Judge to keep the #99 jersey

Aaron Judge is now synonymous with the #99 jersey. But there was a time when the superstar outfielder was unsure about the number and wanted to change it. Yankees legend CC Sabathia stepped in and convinced Judge to keep the number. Judge appeared on a 2022 episode of Sabathia’s R2C2 podcast with Ryan Ruocco and that is when the legendary pitcher recalled the moment. 

On the podcast, Sabathia said, “I remember having a conversation with you in that spring training and you was, you were, you were not gonna keep 99. You remember? You were like ‘Should I keep 99?’ I was like ‘F*ck yeah, you keep 99!’ Because nobody’s like you bro, like you’re a creative player.”

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By doing this, Sabathia may have kept alive Judge’s iconic jersey number. The Yankee’s star outfielder seems to be happy with his number now and is unlikely to ever change it. In fact, after signing a 9-year $360 million contract, Judge is likely to retire in a Yankees #99 jersey. 

Aaron Judge will leave behind a legacy through his jersey number

Legacy is hugely important to Aaron Judge. According to the New York Post’s Jon Heyman, Judge signed with the Yankees despite having bigger offers because he “didn’t want to surrender his legacy over dollars”. Thus, by signing a new contract with the Yankees, the star outfielder will most likely retire with the team.

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Furthermore, it will ensure that he will be the last person to wear the #99 jersey for the Bronx Bombers. It will be interesting to see how he performs in 2023, with a new contract and a new role as captain. What do you think of CC Sabathia convincing Aaron Judge to keep jersey #99? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!