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Atlanta Braves free agent profile: Josh Donaldson

By Benjamin Chase

KANSAS CITY, MO - SEPTEMBER 28: Josh Donaldson #27 of the Cleveland Indians hits a grand slam in the seventh inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on September 28, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
KANSAS CITY, MO - SEPTEMBER 28: Josh Donaldson #27 of the Cleveland Indians hits a grand slam in the seventh inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on September 28, 2018 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) /
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Atlanta Braves
TORONTO, ON – AUGUST 17: Josh Donaldson #20 of the Toronto Blue Jays hits a solo home run in the first inning during MLB game action against the Tampa Bay Rays at Rogers Centre on August 17, 2017 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Heading north of the border

The Oakland A’s traded Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays in November of 2014 in a move that surprised baseball for a package of four players. Donaldson lost his arbitration case with the Blue Jays that winter, sparking some initial rough feelings that would come to bear later on.

The friendly confines in Toronto suited Donaldson, and he won the MVP in 2015 while hitting .297/.371/.568 with 41 doubles and 41 home runs, leading the major leagues in runs scored and the American League in RBI. He followed up with an even better season in 2016 overall, hitting .284/.404/.549 with 32 doubles and 37 home runs, bringing down his strikeout rate and raising his walk rate. He finished 4th in the MVP voting.

In 2017, Donaldson was on his way to another brilliant season with the Blue Jays, hitting 33 home runs over 113 games, with a .270/.385/.559 line.

During the 2015 season, the Jays had talks with Donaldson about a long-term extension. Those talks were led by the Blue Jays GM at the time, Alex Anthopoulos. However, after the 2015 season, Anthopoulos left the Blue Jays, and Donaldson reportedly did not want to sign a long-term deal any longer, signing a two-year pact that left his final arbitration season open.

While the Blue Jays attempted to get him to sign long-term before last offseason, they were left paying $23 million in arbitration for the 2018 season. Knowing he would hit the open market after 2018, and with the injury issues of 2018, the Jays moved Donaldson before the end of August this year.

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