SF Giants fans can boo yet another player who spurned them in free agency

SF Giants fans just finished booing Bryce Harper when the Phillies were in San Francisco. The Giants now have a chance to boo another player who spurned them in free agency as Aaron Judge will play against the Giants in San Francisco for the first time.

SF Giants fans can boo yet another player who spurned them in free agency

Of course, Giants fans were booing Harper for more than him rejecting the Giants in free agency. They were booing him for the home runs he hit against the Giants in the 2014 NLDS and the brawl that broke out when Hunter Strickland intentionally threw at Harper. But his rejection of the Giants was certainly part of the negative response.

Now, the Giants have a chance to give that same warm welcome to Aaron Judge. The free agency pursuits of Harper and Judge were quite different, but all Giants fans will see when Judge steps into the box is a guy who spurned the Giants and probably just used them as a bargaining chip to get more money from the Yankees.

The pursuit of Harper came as a bit of a surprise to most. At the time, the Giants still had a number of star players on the team even if they had had bad seasons in 2017 and 2018. The Giants really only got involved when Harper's asking price began to drop. However, he ultimately chose the Phillies over the Giants.

With the pursuit of Judge, everyone knew the Giants were going to go after him hard following the mediocre 2022 season. The Giants were in desperate need of a star player who could draw people to games, and who better to do that than the guy who had just broken Roger Maris' record for most home runs in a season by an American League player?

Add on the fact that Judge was a kid originally from Northern California who grew up rooting for the Giants and it seemed like a perfect match. Despite this, and despite an infamous tweet from a reporter claiming Judge was going to the Giants, he went to the Yankees, breaking the hearts of Giants fans in the process.

As a kid, Judge probably dreamed of being cheered for at Oracle Park. Now, he will be booed relentlessly for the entire series. Even though Judge is a more likable figure than Harper and seemingly much less pretentious than the Phillies star, Giants fans will not forget the pain of losing out on Judge.

Giants fans are going to voice their displeasure in this series, and perhaps the team can get a measure of redemption on the field by winning a series against the Yankees who are currently tied with the Phillies for the best record in baseball.