Josh Donaldson, Third Base, New York Yankees


Date of Birth: 12/8/1985
Birthplace: Pensacola, Florida
College: Auburn

Josh Donaldson, third baseman for the New York Yankees, was first drafted by the Chicago Cubs in 2007. After playing in the Cubs' minor league system, he was traded to the Oakland Athletics in 2008. Two years later, he made his first major league appearance, playing in 14 games with the Athletics. The following year, he was again in the minor leagues, playing in 115 games in the minors in 2011. Donaldson ended his minor league career with a .275 batting average.

In 2012, Donaldson batted .241 with 66 hits in 75 games with the Athletics. He had a strong rookie season in 2013 with the Athletics, batting .301 with 174 hits, 37 doubles, 24 home runs, and 93 RBIs in 158 games. He finished the 2014 season with 155 hits, 31 doubles, 29 home runs, 98 RBIs, and a .255 batting average.

On November 28, 2014, Donaldson was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for Brett Lawrie. He signed a one-year, $4.3 million contract with the Blue Jays in February, 2015.

Donaldson had a strong 2015 season, finishing with career highs in hits (184), doubles (41), home runs (41), and RBIs (123). He batted .297 in 158 games. He won his first Silver Slugger award and he was named the American League MVP. He also won the Sporting News MLB Player of the Year award and the AL Hank Aaron award. As the Blue Jays' third baseman, he made 287 assists, 32 double plays, 137 putouts, and 18 errors in 150 games. In 41 at-bats in 11 postseason games, he batted .244 with 10 hits, including 3 doubles and 3 home runs, and 8 RBIs.

Donaldson had another good offensive year in 2016, winning his second consecutive Silver Slugger award. He batted .284 with 164 hits, 32 doubles, 37 home runs, and 99 RBIs in 155 games. He fared even better in the postseason, batting .417 with 15 hits, including 6 doubles and a home run, and 5 RBIs in 36 at-bats in 9 games. Defensively, as the Blue Jays' third baseman in 136 games, he made 237 assists, 110 putouts, and 14 errors.

In 2017, Donaldson batted .270 in 113 games. He finished the season with 112 hits, 21 doubles, 33 home runs, 78 RBIs, and 111 strikeouts to 76 walks. Defensively, as a third baseman in 105 games, he made 195 assists, 64 putouts, and 14 errors.

The Blue Jays traded Donaldson to the Cleveland Indians on August 31, 2018. He spent most of the season on the DL, playing in just 36 games with the Blue Jays and 16 games with the Indians. He finished the season with 46 hits and a .246 batting average. In the postseason, he had one hit in 11 at-bats in 3 games.

Donaldson became a free agent on October 29, 2018. He signed with the Atlanta Braves on November 26, 2018. He was named the Comeback Player of the Year in 2019. He finished the season with 142 hits, 33 doubles, 37 home runs, 94 RBIs, 155 strikeouts to 100 walks, and a .259 batting average in 155 games. Defensively, as the Braves' third baseman in 148 games, he made 304 assists, 100 putouts, and 13 errors. In the postseason, he had 3 hits, including a double and a home run, 3 RBIs, 4 strikeouts to 2 walks, and a .158 batting average in 19 at-bats in 5 games.

Donaldson became a free agent on October 31, 2019. He signed a four-year, $92 million contract with the Minnesota Twins on January 22, 2020. He played in 28 games in 2020, and he had a .222 batting average. Defensively, he palyed 26 games at third base.

Donaldson finished the 2021 season with 113 hits, 26 doubles, 26 home runs, 72 RBIs, 114 strikeouts to 74 walks, and a .247 batting average in 135 games. Defensively, as a third baseman in 92 games, he made 187 assists, 71 putouts, and 13 errors.

Donaldson was traded to the Yankees on March 13, 2022.

Career batting statistics for Donaldson through 2021 include:

  • 1,201 games played
  • 1,179 hits
  • 254 doubles
  • 251 home runs
  • 728 RBIs
  • 1,023 strikeouts to 649 walks
  • .269 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Donaldson at third base through 2021 include:

  • 1,071 games played
  • 2,043 assists
  • 219 double plays
  • 845 putouts
  • 127 errors
  • .958 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Josh Donaldson
ESPN - Josh Donaldson