Looking For A Match In A Brendan Donovan Trade

With the Cardinals now embarking on a full rebuild period, it might be surprising if Brendan Donovan is still on the St. Louis roster by Opening Day.  With two years of arbitration control remaining over Donovan, the Cards don’t necessarily have to move him this winter, as they could wait until the trade deadline or even next offseason if the offers just aren’t up to par over the next four months.  But, it’s hard to imagine that Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom will be short on intriguing trade offers for Donovan considering how many boxes the former All-Star checks off for potential suitors.

Age?  Donovan turns 29 in January.  Salary?  Donovan is projected to earn $5.4MM in his second trip through the arbitration process, so his total cost over his two remaining arb years should fall within the $14MM-$15MM range at most.  Offense?  Donovan has a career 119 wRC+ from his .282/.361/.411 slash line and 40 home runs, and he has been one of the game’s most difficult players to strike out during his four MLB seasons.  Defense?  He won the NL Gold Glove for utility players in 2022, and Donovan has been at least serviceable at multiple positions (all four infield spots and the two corner outfield spots) while playing primarily at second base and left field.

There are a couple of downsides to acknowledge, such as Donovan’s career splits (.812 OPS against right-handed pitching, .651 OPS against left-handed pitching).  Some teams may view the left-handed hitting Donovan primarily as a strong-side platoon player more than a true everyday player.  Even the Cardinals limited his exposure to southpaws, both as a function of these splits and because the Cards also wanted to get some playing time to their right-handed bats.

Donovan’s injury history includes a UCL brace procedure that cost him the last two months of the 2023 season and a sports hernia surgery just from earlier this month, as Donovan spent some time on the injured list this season with some groin problems.  While sports hernia procedures are usually pretty straight-forward and Donovan is expected to be fine for the start of Spring Training, rival clubs might be more inclined to wait until a bit later into the offseason (or at least past the Winter Meetings) just to ensure that Donovan is fully ready to go.  This means that some teams might acquire other players in the interim that will take them out of the market for Donovan’s services.

Rebuilding teams like the White Sox, Rockies, Nationals, and Twins can be reasonably ruled out, as none have any pressing reason to try and win the bidding war for Donovan’s services.  Beyond this group, just about every other team in baseball is at least a somewhat plausible fit for Donovan, so let’s break this down team by team…

If Only They Were In Another Division…

Since the start of the 2004 season, St. Louis has made six total trades with the Brewers, Reds, Pirates, and Cubs.  Three of those deals were low-level player-for-cash transactions.  None of these trades happened on Bloom’s watch, and he’s not going to hang up the phone if any of these NL Central teams made a very compelling offer.  But, history suggests that Donovan won’t be shipped to one of the Cardinals’ division opponents, even though he’d fit in with any of this quartet.  The Pirates and Reds in particular have big offensive needs and young pitching on offer, Donovan would nicely bolster Milwaukee’s infield picture, and even the Cubs could deploy Donovan at third base or in the outfield.

Less Likely Suitors

Some readers may be surprised to see the Marlins outside of the list of rebuilding teams, but Miami isn’t quite in that category following a 79-win season.  It’s still hard to see the Fish making a bolder move like a Donovan trade even if they are nearing the end of their capital-R Rebuild period, since the Marlins probably still aren’t at the stage where they’d trade away prospects for more experienced talent.

The Red Sox, Orioles, Tigers, and Mets all have some questions to answer with their position-player mix, but these teams are already pretty heavy on left-handed hitters.  Other trades could potentially alter the equation, but chances are these four teams will seek out right-handed bats before looking to add another prominent lefty-swinger.  The Diamondbacks are mostly in the same boat, though there’s a sliver of a chance Donovan could be acquired to play third base, if Arizona wanted to give Jordan Lawlar more seasoning or if Lawlar was perhaps himself dealt to address other needs (i.e. pitching).

The Astros are badly in need of left-handed hitters and had interest in Donovan at this past trade deadline, but that was before Houston further crowded its lineup picture by reuniting with Carlos Correa.  Between Correa, Jeremy Pena, Jose Altuve, Isaac Paredes, Christian Walker, Cam Smith in right field, Yordan Alvarez as the primary DH, there isn’t really anywhere for Donovan to get regular at-bats, unless the Astros perhaps dealt Paredes or Walker to make room.

Maybe, After Another Trade Is Made?

Nick Allen is a superb defender who can’t hit, so the Braves are another team that could give Donovan a longer look at shortstop.  Right field is also a plausible part-time position for Donovan in Atlanta, as he can spell Ronald Acuna Jr. once in a while when Acuna gets a DH day.  The most intriguing position would be second base and Donovan is an upgrade over Ozzie Albies, yet the Braves would first have to trade Albies to clear out the keystone.  Some of the teams interested in Donovan would also probably have interest in Albies, but it would be harder for the Braves to pull off the two-step of first moving Albies and then convincing the Cardinals to send Donovan their way before any other suitors pounced.

The Rays are in a bit of a similar situation with Brandon Lowe, another trade candidate owed $11.5MM in his final year of team control.  Tampa Bay would probably prefer to first deal Lowe to open up second base as Donovan’s primary spot, but the Rays could also use Donovan at shortstop and in the outfield (or even at first base if Yandy Diaz is traded).

The Guardians’ biggest priority this winter should be finding hitting of any kind, and Donovan is also the kind of versatile contact hitter that the Guards love.  The issue is that the Guards already have a lot of left-handed or switch-hitters.  Cleveland could attempt multiple trades by dealing from its left-handed or infield depth for a righty hitter and then shooting for Donovan, but just obtaining a couple of right-handed bats full stop seems like a smoother fit.

Donovan’s Past Trade Suitors

Since we’ve mentioned Houston’s past interest in Donovan, let’s devote this space to five other teams who have been linked to the All-Star over the years.  Obviously many more teams than just this group have checked in with the Cardinals about Donovan, but these are the teams who have been specifically named as interested parties.

The Yankees have been linked to Donovan multiple times, as recently as this past trade deadline and as far back as the 2023-24 offseason.  This track record of interest means that New York can’t be ruled out of Donovan’s market, yet some other moves have left the Yankees pretty heavy on left-handed hitting infielders — Ryan McMahon, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ben Rice all swing from the left side.  That said, New York could use Donovan in left field if Jasson Dominguez isn’t viewed as ready for regular time, or Donovan could get some work at shortstop while Anthony Volpe recovers from shoulder surgery.  Of all the positions Donovan has played at the MLB level, he has the least time at shortstop, with just 106 innings logged.

The Phillies and Dodgers were both reportedly interested in Donovan prior to this summer’s trade deadline.  Donovan could slot in for Philadelphia at third base if Alec Bohm is moved or in either corner outfield spot, as some room will become open in the Phils’ outfield once Nick Castellanos is gone.  Left field is the most logical space for Donovan in the Dodgers’ loaded lineup, but L.A. will probably be eager to bounce Donovan around to multiple positions for platoon or timeshare purposes.

The Blue Jays and Athletics each had some talks with the Cardinals about Donovan as far back at the 2022-23 offseason, when Donovan was just coming off his third-place finish in NL Rookie of the Year voting.  Fast forward to this winter and each team still has a need.  Toronto can slot Donovan into its multi-player platoon system at second base, third base, and the corner outfield spots.  If Bo Bichette left in free agency, Donovan would likely become the Jays’ primary second baseman, with Andres Gimenez shifting over to take on the shortstop role.

The A’s have big lineup holes at second and third base, plus Donovan’s salary is a fit within the club’s limited budget.  Perhaps the question here is whether or not the A’s would make this kind of “win-now” trade before the team moves to Las Vegas, and for a player like Donovan whose arbitration control doesn’t extend beyond the Athletics’ time in Sacramento.

The Cleanest Fits

The Angels had the highest team strikeout rate in baseball in 2025, were one of the league’s worst-hitting teams in general, their lineup is overloaded with right-handed hitters, and there are no clear candidates for either second or third base.  All things considered, Donovan might fit better on the Angels than on any other club, though that probably isn’t surprising given how the Halos are struggling in so many departments.  Unfortunately, the farm system is another of those thin departments, so Los Angeles will be hard-pressed to outbid other teams if it comes down to a prospect bidding war.

The Giants could make Donovan their new starting second baseman, while still using Casey Schmitt as a right-handed complement to shield Donovan against some southpaws.  Heliot Ramos is another right-handed bat who is still San Francisco’s top choice in left field, but Donovan could easily get some time in both left and in the Giants’ wide-open right-field vacancy.

Highly-touted prospects Cole Young and Colt Emerson may be the future of the Mariners infield, and both are left-handed hitters like Donovan.  However, a Seattle team in win-now mode might prefer to add Donovan to address its second base and third base needs in the present.  Donovan’s two remaining arb years leaves the door open for Young and Emerson as longer-term options, and Donovan’s ability to play both infield spots would allow the Mariners to also give Young, Emerson (who has yet to make his MLB debut) or Ben Williamson some at-bats at the keystone or the hot corner.

With Luis Arraez entering free agency, the Padres will be looking for a new first baseman, or they could move Jake Cronenworth to from second base to first base.  A Donovan trade would line up with that latter scenario, and while the Padres might not use Donovan’s versatility as much as other teams, he could still be shifted around the diamond when any of Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr., or (the likely to be retained) Ramon Laureano gets an off-day or a DH day.

The Rangers could use more lefty balance in the lineup, will be working on more of a limited budget this offseason, and will be focusing on better situational hitting and contact hitting, so Donovan is a strong fit on all counts.  Marcus Semien still has second base spoken for in Arlington, but Donovan can be used at third base (if Josh Jung is traded) or in the outfield (Adolis Garcia is expected to be traded or non-tendered).

Since mentioned the Cardinals’ trade histories with their NL Central rivals earlier, it’s worth noting that the Cards also don’t often swing deals with the Royals, their fellow Missouri team.  If geography isn’t a huge obstacle, Donovan would be a great help to a Royals club in dire need of outfielders, and second base could also be a need if Kansas City decided to move on from Jonathan India and/or Michael Massey.