Yankees’ Aaron Judge Sends Message to Former Teammate After Retirement Announcement

The New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge shared a message to a former teammate on social media on Tuesday.

by Xavier Constantino

Sep 29, 2026

New York Yankees, Aaron Judge

John Jones-Imagn Images

A day before the New York Yankees’ 2026 postseason campaign, Aaron Judge sent a message to a former teammate on Instagram.

In his Instagram story, the Yankees’ captain posted a photo of himself and Tyler Wade on the field, with the caption: “What a ride brother! From the 1st run to the last!”

The message was in response to the former teammate, Wade, announcing his retirement following nine seasons in the big leagues, beginning his career with the Yankees in 2017.

In a message posted on social media, Wade wrote, “For as long as I can remember, all I ever wanted was to play in the Major Leagues. Now, 13 years later and after 9 years in the big leagues, it’s time to move on.”

New York Yankees shortstop Tyler Wade (12) slides into home, scoring the winning run with New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) reacting during the tenth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

The Yankees drafted Wade in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB Draft, and he made his MLB debut in June 2017, in the middle of Judge’s first full season in the majors.

Wade spent parts of five seasons with the major league club, including five straight trips to the postseason before the Yankees traded him to the Los Angeles Angels in November 2021.

Wade later went on to play for the Athletics and the San Diego Padres. Across 506 career games, he hit .216 with a .294 on-base percentage and a .284 slugging percentage. He totaled seven home runs, 60 RBIs and 51 stolen bases.

Wade signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers this year but did not make the Opening Day roster. He was released by the team in April after hitting .226 in 16 games in Triple-A Round Rock.