Barry Bonds hopes Giants sign 1 slugger

Jul 8, 2017; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants former outfielder Barry Bonds looks on prior to a game against the Miami Marlins at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge is performing home run feats that have not really been seen since Barry Bonds was playing for the San Francisco Giants. Bonds is certainly taking notice of Judge, and he wants the slugger to follow in his own footsteps.

Bonds said he is rooting for Judge, and that he wants to see the Yankees star come to the Giants as a free agent this offseason.

“I hope he signs here,” Bonds told Barry M. Bloom of Sportico. “Can it happen? I don’t know. It depends on what the Yankee payroll is. But we would love to have him, I’ll tell you that.”

Bonds is a special assistant for the Giants, though he has no formal role in player acquisition. However, the franchise could certainly deploy him to recruit Judge. Playing for the Giants may already be intriguing for Judge, who grew up in the Bay Area and was a childhood fan of the team. In fact, a report from earlier in the season suggested that the Yankees view the Giants as the biggest threat to sign Judge away this winter.

Judge enters play Friday with 60 home runs on the season. The 30-year-old will be a free agent this winter, and whichever team signs him will have to hand out a huge contract to land him.