Anthony Rizzo Isn't Going Anywhere

This week, there were rumors of the Houston Astros interest in signing Anthony Rizzo which would have been a knife in the face to a Yankees team they just ragdolled in the playoffs on their way to winning another World Series.

The Rizzo deal is for 2 years, $34M with a club option for $17M for a third year. The buyout in the third year is for $6M.

— Jack Curry (@JackCurryYES) November 15, 2022

BUT HE’S BACK MOTHERFUCKERSSSSSS.

This is huge for a number of reasons. With the way this team continues to fall short of the World Series year after year, it’s impossible to not question the vibes in the clubhouse. Anthony Rizzo continuing to re-sign after every season is a strong sign that there isn’t some weird unfixable stench in that locker room. Like, everyone still likes each other and likes playing for this franchise and wants to come back and hang with each other for another 162 games.

It also means that this front office is still determined to win a championship. With Aaron Judge becoming a free agent, the Yankees could’ve let Judge leave in free agency and quietly tore the team down to save on payroll and restock their farm system.

With Rizzo back, that means they are committed to bringing Aaron Judge back and spending whatever it takes to make that happen. Rizzo’s left-handed bat is so crucial in the batting order between Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton so signing him means they plan on keeping those 3 men together.

Oh, and he’s a pretty good baseball player himself. Here’s what Rizzo accomplished this past season:

130 games
32 homers
75 RBIs
104 hits
77 runs
132 wRC+

Anthony Rizzo homers to cut the deficit to 2pic.twitter.com/vjNBTzU3G6

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) October 20, 2022

The Yankees have a lot of heavy lifting to do if they want to finally overcome the big bad Astros. Re-signing Anthony Rizzo is a crucial part of the blueprint.

Aaron Judge, you’re next.