6:23pm: Toronto is advising other organizations that it expects to trade Donaldson this evening, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links), who adds the Indians and Astros as clubs that have recently “shown interest.”
The Braves, meanwhile, seem “unlikely” to land Donaldson, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter).
6:07pm: The Yankees are in on Donaldson but could only take on around half his remaining salary, Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets. MLB Network Radio’s Steve Phillips had connected the New York organization to Donaldson, via Twitter, while also listing the Cards, Phillies, and Braves as teams still engaged in discussions with Toronto.
4:58pm: Though he had been scheduled to play another rehab game tonight, Donaldson was pulled for reasons unrelated to his physical condition, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca tweets. That seems to hint, at least, that the Jays are taking precautions in the event that an agreement is struck involving the veteran third baseman.
Meanwhile, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said this afternoon that he “would not anticipate” any deals coming together by tonight’s deadline. Of course, that doesn’t rule the team out on Donaldson or other possible targets.
12:17pm: Donaldson has indeed cleared waivers and is eligible to be traded to any team, tweets Fancred’s Jon Heyman. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets the same, adding that Donaldson is likely to be traded before midnight tonight.
10:33am: The Cardinals have interest in acquiring Josh Donaldson in advance of tonight’s postseason-eligibility deadline, reports Jon Morosi of MLB.com. Morosi adds that the chances of Donaldson being dealt to the Indians are believed to be “slim.”
It’s logical to see St. Louis emerge as a viable suitor for Donaldson, with both Jedd Gyorko and Kolten Wong currently on the disabled list. Neither injury has been characterized as a season-ender, to this point, but with the Cards holding a two-game lead on an NL Wild Card spot and trailing the division-leading Cubs by a matter of 4.5 games, every win is critical. Donaldson is far from a surefire upgrade given that he’s spent three months on the shelf due to a calf injury, though, and Morosi notes that the Cards would need to deem the Blue Jays’ asking price “sufficiently low” in order to move forward on a trade.
Donaldson has played a pair of games on a minor league rehab assignment, homering for Toronto’s Class-A Advanced affiliate yesterday, and he spoke to the Toronto Sun’s Rob Longley about his frustration with his 2018 health issues while also alluding to some frustration with the organization.
“I can’t control what the team wants to do with me,” Donaldson said, though he declined to further delve into his current relationship with the club. “…There’s a lot I can say about that, but I choose not to say anything about it right now. I don’t feel now is the time or the place. It’s one of those things that, as an athlete, I can only control what I can control.”
Donaldson was reportedly placed on revocable trade waivers Tuesday, when he was first eligible for waiver placement. (Major League rules stipulate that injured players must be healthy enough to take the field when run through revocable waivers.) It’s not known yet whether he cleared, though it seems unlikely that a team would place a claim on him when he hasn’t played in a big league game since late May and still has nearly $4MM remaining to be paid out on this season’s $23MM salary.
Donaldson’s very placement on waivers, though, is at least somewhat shrouded in mystery. Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi tweets that there is “some grey” regarding whether he was actually eligible to go through waivers. Donaldson’s would-be rehab game was rained out Wednesday, but he wasn’t slated to be in the lineup that night due to reported soreness in his calf following Tuesday’s rehab appearance. Certainly, some soreness following a player’s first game action in three months could be expected, but it’s presently unclear whether that would prevent him from meeting the league’s standards as pertains to the health of player being put through the August waiver process.
If the Blue Jays aren’t able to work out a trade of Donaldson (for whatever reason), he’ll return to the club to finish out what has generally been a successful four-year tenure. Donaldson took home American League MVP honors in his first season with the Jays back in 2015 and has batted .281/.383/.548 in 2066 plate appearances since being traded to Toronto in a lopsided deal back in the 2014-15 offseason.
Should Donaldson remain on the roster into September, the Jays will have to weigh whether to issue him a qualifying offer following the year. Doing so would entitle them to draft pick compensation in the event that Donaldson rejects and sign elsewhere. But the organization also runs the risk of the third baseman accepting that one-year offer, which should be for around $18MM, which would create some roster issues for the 2019 season. Toronto is set to turn third base over to uber-prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. next season, and a return from Donaldson would complicate matters. Players who accept the qualifying offer can’t be traded before June 15 the following season without their consent, so it’s not as simple as just trading him this winter in the event that accepts a QO. The Jays could try to make things work by having Donaldson and Guerrero play multiple positions — Donaldson has had cameos at shortstop and first base for the Jays in the past, and either could serve as a DH — but there’s certainly some degree of incentive for the team to work out a trade before tonight’s midnight deadline.
Do it Cardinals only way we get 1st wildcard spot
Umm…we’re in first wild card spot without him so…..
They might not need him to get their. The cardinals still are even remotely in the realm of the 4 teams that will win the WS
It’s telling that the Jays sent him to A ball…….
By this time of the year, the good players in an ML teams organization have been promoted – AAA guys to the majors as injury replacements, AA guys to AAA, etc. Farm directors and other FO people want to see the good players at a higher level to help them make decisions on what level said players are assigned to in 2019.
The fact that the Jays sent a guy with $4 MM in salary remaining, that hasn’t played in 3 months, to show his wares against some of the worst players in organized baseball is an obvious set-up. Mark Shapiro has always been a unique FO person. This entire Donaldson situation has been absurd.
A ball is the normal spot for rehab for any major league players…
Were they play has nothing to do with talent level. Its usually is close to the minor league rehab facility or the closest team to were the big league club is…
“A ball is the normal spot for rehab for any major league players…”
Really?
I live in an AA small city. ML players are sent here or to the close AAA city to rehab before going back to the majors to play. It’s a common practice.
I live in ny penn territory and we get “all star” big leaguers up here every couple weeks or so during the summer.
right! this guy just wanted to $#!+ on it
So wait, one of the hottest teams in baseball, that is already in the 1st wildcard spot, needs a player that isn’t on its team and has been injured all year to get the spot they are in? I think your logic needs some work.
It’s my opinion and I’m still sticking with it
Well you can’t fix stupid…. J/K
Theres 28-30 games left and you’re .5 ahead for that spot. You don’t have to agree, but it’s not stupid logic.
First I did write J/K about the stupid.. JUST KIDDING. I also said logic needs some work. Never said stupid logic. But just so you know it is stupid logic. It is clearly not the only way they can win the 1st wild card spot. There are an infinite number of ways to win 1st WC spot. If you want to be literal, so can I.
Td, you cant reason with that one. Definitely below the Mendoza line….
The man hasn’t played since May except for one rehab game in Class A where his calf was once again sore the next day to the point where he could not play. So the Cards should pay $3 mil for this guy to sit on the bench for a month? They are surely not that dumb.
They paid Holland $14 million to lose 3 games.
LOL
Being the hottest team in August has nothing to do with being the hottest team in October…
You are correct. However being the hottest team in baseball in October has nothing to do with obtaining the 1st WC spot either.
Exactly. Indians were a record breaking team in last year in September and look at what happened to them.
or patriots, 1 loss team
Idiot
Who are you calling an idiot?
Children
Who you calling a children… 🙂
Simpleton
lolol Ant!!
It’s not nice to call children idiots. They’re just stupid.
NOT
I agree that the Cardinals should take On Donaldson’s salary for the remainder of this season. Three infield starters are bummed up. Gyroko (strained groin), Wong, (strained groin) and Carpenter with his shoulder causing him throwing problems. Also, Ozuna. Donaldson would fit right in. Either with his play and his bat, or on the injured list like the rest of them besides Carpenter. HOWEVER……In Reality, the Cardinals will pass on Donaldson. REMEMBER…..the Cardinals still have John Mozeliak under contract!!! His history says….he won’t pick up an impact player to help this year. He won’t pick up an impact bat for 2019 either. Mozeliak’s theory is to grab the low hanging fruit. Logic says, if a player is classified as low hanging fruit, they are there because of a reason. Mozeliak’s theory works out for him about one out of every 6 times. That’s the reason Mozeliak has wasted multimillions of ownerships dollars. All of the Coach’s you hired with Mathaney are gone Mozeliak, so you can’t blame your faults on them anymore. Mr. DeWitt walked you down to the manager’s office after a game so you could see him terminate Mathaney, Mabry, etc. so you can’t blame the manager and the hitting coach for having to start 4 second basemen on the infield. 3 playing out of position!! Michael Girsch built the minor league champions when he was Assistant General Manager. So, Mr. Mozeliak, you can’t take credit for that one either. Prior to Girsch, it was Jeff Ludlov that nailed your butt out year after year. John Mozeliak, I hope you find an Accounting job some where that will pay you multi millions!!! Just having Mozeliak out of the President of Baseball operations would make 85% of Cardinal Nation extremely happy!!!
just win the division
Thanks Steve. I often complain so I felt obliged to let you know that it was a worthy read (not that you care about pleasing everyone, which while being the goal, simply can’t be done).
See you Chicago this weekend,Josh.
He’s going to the Red Sox!?!?!?!?
Um…I think he meant the Cubs and you might mean the White Sox? I don’t think either are in the conversation for him though.
I love this guy, so much time lost for an awesome player. Betcha OAKLAND wishes they never traded him away, if he was healthy and still with them, they would be way ahead of Houston, but that race is intense for all fans!! What a year all over the league.
Enjoy guys!! ⚾️⚾️⚾️⚾️❤
with no Chapman and likely no k Davis. I’m sure they are ok just wish they had traded for more
If he makes it to the NL, who has first choice? Cardinals or Braves? Either of them would pick him up if they could.
It’s believed he cleared waivers. If so anyone is free to trade for him with no order affect
It’d be based on the standings at the time he was placed on waivers. Atlanta was a half-game better than the Cardinals at the time, so the Cards would have priority.
I don’t think the Braves would be a lock to claim him, though, given Johan Camargo’s enormous improvements at the plate this season.
If he cleared, of course, it’d be moot and the Jays could talk to any team about him.
Right now it’s Braves. Cards have second best record behind only cubs.
Past that point. Now it is whomever he chooses if he is healthy – which he is not.
Not he chooses. Whomever the Jays choose.
Even with Kipnis starting to show signs of life at the plate it would be smart for the Indians to move on Donaldson. The Indians need an experienced bat for the postseason and Donaldson could fit that role.
Indians will be too stingy on salary. Jays are probably expecting very little in prospects. This allows the Jays to save a bit of cash and also give Josh a chance at a good September and October. Both sides should feel good about this ending. Josh may think he should have been treated better but there are only a few teams that can afford risky long term contracts. The Jays are not one of them and as a Roger’s shareholder I totally agree with this policy. Roger’s Communications owns the Jays. .
the company is Rogers not Roger’s
Its autocorrect genius.
It’s
to me it is just RCI.B which is the stock symbol on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Anyway you have inspired me to start a movement to rename the team to the Toronto Jolly Rogers.
an experienced bat? lindor, Ramirez, Edwin, gomes, kipnis have all played in the playoffs.
Yes they have. But with mixed results.
Oh, so how many quality players with rings could they get today?
I laugh at Kipnis being used as an example of an experienced bat. Next reference will be Kipnis’ glove. He had one half year where he was above average. I’m a lifelong Indians fan and I cannot find a reason to like Kipnis.
If it’s the cards, I think he Is definitely worth taking a gamble on, especially with expanded rosters in September. I just hope if they go after him that the asking price wouldn’t be high. Though I can’t imagine the blue jays asking a lot considering everything. And that’s even if he has passed through waivers already so that he can be traded to any team. Still have a feeling they won’t go after him but I think they should at least try
Is it possible to get more information on the fuzzy nature of his health and how the rules apply?
Heard Milwaukee is looking to put him at SS.
I think the Braves should acquire him. it would be a sneaky good play. Donaldson is familiar with the Braves GM. it would push the Braves over the top and make them legit playoff contenders. plus, he wouldn’t block Austin Riley. then, the Braves could move Camargo into a super utility role or have replace Dansby at short for the stretch run. Plus, they wouldn’t have to give up much for Donaldson. thoughts??
The braves are already legit playoff contenders. But I like Donaldson on any contender if he comes cheap. It’s a great gamble for pretty much anyone. It’s only a month of salary for probably not a huge haul and worst case scenario he doesn’t get healthy and can’t play. Best case scenario is he turns back into Donaldson of the past 4 years and leads your team to the WS. I think it’s somewhere in between. Plays okay and is better than most bench bats. Which is a good deal if you don’t have to give up much.
If teams are only willing to give the Jays a lousy low level prospect I don’t think he should be traded. Give him the QO and then trade him next year. No need for the Jays to just give him away. If a team wants him and his imposing bat then pay up or get lost.
Or the Cards say take this low level prospect for an injured Donaldson and the $22 million relief or get lost.
It wouldn’t be $22 million in relief.
It is if they want a qualifying offer.
wut
you make no sense.
Not sure he’s worth the $18ish million QO, especially since that also means he’s blocking Vlad Jr. You’re taking a huge gamble that he’s not only back healthy, but also performing well next year, all while holding back the development of a potential future all-star. Not a gamble I’d take. Find the most attractive lotto ticket in the bunch and take what you can get.
Cards have $69 million going to players who have -1.9 war so I think they can afford a gamble on another 4 million
What a stupid post.
They really don’t want to give him the QO. I think I’d take the risk but hopefully they can get back something intriguing if they really want to get rid of him.
Yes they do. If Josh is really upset with the organization he will not accept the QO. If he does accept, so be it for 1 more season.
You would be a great GM for the Red Sox. What is 18 million dollars between friends ? Hey Jays fans how long before you figure it out that Josh is NOT getting a QO from the Jays. Even if they were 99 per cent sure he would not take it they can not take the chance. Perhaps you can get insurance against someone accepting a QO.
TigerFan – JD at a paycut with Estrada, Granderson, Garcia and hopefully Solarte off the books, where is the wasted spending you are “trying” to point at?
JD accepting a QO won’t destroy the franchise. Period. It might actually help a lot more than you’d ever understand.
OK trimreaper if this plays out that the Jays offer Josh a QO I swear I will never comment on this site again. Solarte has 5,5 owed in 2019 and 8 million for 2020. Why do you think Smoak was put on waivers who is owed only 6 million in 2019?. I agree with you that Josh is a great player and if he stays healthy he will be a huge help to whoever gets him at the end of today. For that matter I think the RedSox and Yankees and Astros should be after him. Of course the Indians are in on him, they are in on everyone which is what frugal prudent organizations should do.
To answer, Smoak was put on waivers because Smoak is one of the very few players worth something on the team; not a high salary, not a high option year salary and puts up numbers with a good glove. For the Jays, Smoak can bring a return.
The correct answer is that nearly every player is put on revocable waivers. In many cases, it’s NOT an indication the of an intent to trade. Often it’s a smoke screen (sorry for the pun) to disguise the players they actually intend to trade.
Let’s go Cardinals
I think with Josh Donaldson clears revocable waivers the chance of him ending up with the Braves is above 60% right now.
If anyone can afford to give up a minor league pitcher who would conceivably be better than the comp pick, it’s the Cards.
Or the braves
Exactly correct.
4 million for a player that may still be hurt and only has a month of the season left is a stupid gamble
It’s not going to impact next year’s payroll, so who cares?
im p sure the FO cares. they probably have the conclusion that they waste enough money as is
The only reason a fan should care about a billionaire wasting his money is if it’s going to restrict future player spending.
Or if it’s going to cause beer prices to rise.
Nobody cares about the billionaire owners but if a fan looks at the move realistically it doesn’t make sense. All of the owners are filthy rich but theyre not going to piss away their money.
http://www.espn.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/85090/bad-money-the-worst-contract-investments-on-all-30-teams
As a fan, realistically the Jays should bring JD back. He could boost his stock next year. He will also have a slightly reduced salary. I wouldn’t pick up Solarte’s option.
I’d say Granderson was a waste of money since they didn’t deal him. Trading for Solarte was a waste of money. Re-signing Estrada was a wasted of money. Signing 3 DHs last year (Morales, Pearce, Bautista) was a waste of money. Signing Jaime Garcia was a waste of money (I’d decline his option and take the 2-mil buyout).
I can stomach the former MVP for 1 more year. Prior to the injury he was a perennial All-Star. I’d pay the man with a QO.
Cards and Jays have traded so much the last few years, Jays probably know the Cards system better than any other team’s. That’s gotta help when trying to put together a last-minute deadline deal.
Look people he wont go to the division team .
So Yankees Red Sox are out. he wont go to the Indians.
He wo t go to the Cards.Just call it a hunch.
Watch the Astros grab him.
The Jays traded JA Happ to the Yankees and Steve Pearce to the Red Sox this year already.
i think the cards know the astros system better than the astros.
Slightly shocked that he made it through revocable wavers. It will be interesting to see if he is in the lineup tonight
What surprises me most is that there’s only one Milwaukee Brewer joke…Would he help the following teams even if he moved to 1B?
N: MIL, OAK, NYY, HOU, PHI, LAD, SEA
Y ARI, STL, CLE. CHC, ATL, BOS, COL
The answer to most of those is no.
toronto and STL love to trade wouldnt surprise me with lets say a garcia, low level pitcher and a PTBNL (Martinez)
i honestly dont think itll be that much. probably a lottery ticket a ball player. i could be wrong but theres alot of unknown with Donaldson right now and only 1 month of season left.
Blue Jays have zero trade leverage as it stands thanks to this revelation that he’s frustrated with the organization. Jays have more leverage with a QO given the situation. Keep him.
I really don’t know why they’d bother trading him now.
Then they keep him and pay 4 million the rest of the season. They are much better off keeping that 4 million and getting a tiny prospect.
How tiny?
4’8
Wish the Mariners could trade for him and get off Kyle Seager.
The Cardinals emerge as the team rumored to be acquiring Donaldson, while the Indians are preparing to sleep through a second trade deadline. Antonetti and Chernoff haven’t gotten the job done so far this year. Traded for Brad Hand and then sat on their damn hands with other bullpen holes, a short bench, and a weak bottom third of the lineup.
Antonetti and Chernoff woke up just in time. I like it!
The only way the Cards get Donalson is if he agrees to an extension prior to the deal. And if he goes for a low level prospect and/or slot money.
The extension isnt a deal breaker. Probably wont even be in the discussion.
should the several time stud rush to sign for multiple discount years in his injured season? or should the team rush to throw multiple years at the 30+ year old barely on the field this year? 0.00% chance. I don’t think i’d give up something comparable to a comp pick for him, but mmmmmm i dunno. interested to see.
As a A’s fan, I always cherish Josh Donaldson. He was brought up as a catcher, Oakland needed to replace Eric Chavez at third and Billy Beane decided to try Josh out! Josh just turned to is a tremendous player. We have Chapman now but gosh Donaldson is a machine when healthy…
@July82001… I had no idea that JD was shifted to 3B to ‘take over’ Eric Chavez’ role. That’s a pretty cool piece of info.
Donaldson would be a plus for any number of contenders. Cardinals make a lot of sense with Gyorko hobbled. And could you see him playing 2B for the Rockies in that ballpark? And don’t count out the Phillies or the Braves. He’ll be wearing a new uniform by tomorrow.
If the Cardinals sign him, can he report to the minor league for rehab and still be eligible for the post-season (if healthy)?
At this point get Donaldson and take a chance that you get lightning in a bottle. Heck you never know what that could lead in to for future years. If it fails then they stick with what works. Josh Donaldson (what he has been) at 75% is better than gyrko at 100%… no offense to jedd! It’s September make the team deeper and make the post season and leave off what’s not working in October
I say roll the dice and Yankees pick him up
I don’t get why None of the contenders in the national league didn’t claim him to block him from the Cardinals. Also if the cardinals want him why didn’t they claim him?
Yanks got McCutchen without claiming him.
A lot of teams may have been put off by the 4 million or so left owing this year. There’s always the slight chance the Jays would let him go for nothing and StL would be on the hook for the remaining salary. At least now StL knows that no other team wanted that salary, so it would increase their leverage in a deal with the Jays and have them pick up some of that remaining salary.
They did not want to pay his 4 Mil salary
it’s called $4m and unknown health.
Get it done, they’ve got plenty of payroll room
Eff it, Cubs can get him to play shortstop. I’m sorry last time i’ll do it.
John Mozeliak sucks, he’s afraid to pull the trigger on a no risk high upside move!
Fowler, Cecil, Gegerson, and Holland.
The more I think about it the more it makes sense the Jays would want to move on. If he accepts the QO, you can recoup some value next year perhaps…. but then who plays third? The team surely wants Vlad to play third every day. Donaldson would be unhappy playing another position in what amounts to an audition season for a shot at a sunset contract. And all for a chance to re-establish some value. It isn’t even a lock. The team could be 22 mil poorer and in the very same position at this time next year.
Saw on mlb network jays are talking to the Yankees Braves Phillies and St. Louis. To me Phillies and St Louis makes the most sense, why the hell would the Yankees need him
Yankees always need the spotlight on them at all times.
Absolutely.
If all those teams are seriously interested then I doubt the Cards go there. They have viable options, and aren’t about to take on the 4 mil and offer up a valuable prospect, nor should they.
AA go get’em
If all those teams are seriously interested then I doubt the Cards go there. They have viable options, and aren’t about to take on the 4 mil and offer up a valuable prospect, nor should they.
Brewers he can play ss
According to unnamed sources he’s going to Yankees and will probably play 1st.
Let’s just make this clear, Yankees seriously don’t need anyone else, seriously.
Seriously?
Sucks how it’s all unfolding. Once it was evident Bautista was done, this was supposed to be JD’s team. Did he even play more games than Tulo in the past 2 seasons?
Great player when healthy, assuming father time hasn’t crept up. Hopefully he can spend the off season getting past these health concerns and rake.
I’m highly skeptical that Yankees would be in on Donaldson with Neil Walker still on the team. This is noise thrown out by the Blue Jays to drive up his trade price.
I thought Andujar was still a yankee
I honestly have no clue where he’s going. I’ve seen the Braves, Yankees, Astros, Phillies, Indians, and Cardinals linked to him. I’ve seen the Cardinals and Braves both as longshots. I’ve seen the Yankees only interested if the Jays pay most of his salary.
Does a team have to immediately add him to its 40-man roster if he’s on the DL? At this point, he’s got to be considered a bench bat opposed to an upgrade. Meaning you can’t acquire him expecting him to be your everyday third baseman.
Who wants the lottery ticket?
Just announced he has been traded
According to Jeff Passan
I am thinking Red Sox. On Nesn the Red Sox very concerned about Devers and wouldn’t surprise me if Donaldson goes to Sox.
Went to Indians, good move