Career over? Yankees cut ties with former Blue Jays star Josh Donaldson
One of the most dynamic hitters in Toronto Blue Jays history could be seeing his baseball career nearing an end.
Spending the last two seasons with the New York Yankees, Josh Donaldson is now searching for a new employer.
As per the official Yankees account on Tuesday afternoon, the team has officially released him during the final year of his four-year, $92 million contract originally signed in 2019 with Minnesota.
Prior to tonight’s game, the Yankees released INF Josh Donaldson from the roster.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) August 29, 2023
Donaldson’s last game with the Yankees was on July 15, before he was placed on the 60-day injured list with a calf injury.
Toronto is currently without third baseman Matt Chapman, although Donaldson doesn’t exactly seem like the right fit to replace him at this stage in his career.
Though he finished 11th in American League MVP voting in 2019 with Atlanta, Father Time has been coming for the now 37-year-0ld Donaldson for a few years now.
In 33 games in pinstripes this season, Donaldson has just a .142 batting average with 15 hits, 10 home runs, 15 RBIs and 13 runs scored. It’s tough to imagine any MLB team taking a flier on him for the remainder of the season, even with his pedigree earlier in his career.
As per SNY’s Andy Martino, Donaldson will be on waivers until 1 pm tomorrow but is very likely to go unclaimed and then become a free agent.
Josh Donaldson can become an unrestricted free agent if unclaimed by 1pm tomorrow, per league source. Brief story coming about why Yankees released him now while on 60-day IL.
— Andy Martino (@martinonyc) August 29, 2023
Donaldson, who won the American League MVP back in 2015 in his first season with the team as well as being named a two-time All-Star in Toronto, had played for four different teams — Cleveland, Atlanta, Minnesota and New York — after leaving Toronto in a 2018 trade.
In 2015, the best season of his career, Donaldson wowed Toronto crowds with a .297 batting average with 184 hits, 41 homers, 123 RBIs and 122 runs scored in 158 games played for the Blue Jays.
But his most iconic moment in Toronto came in the 2016 ALDS, where he ended up scoring the walk-off run following a frantic dash to home plate in the team’s second consecutive postseason series win over the Texas Rangers.
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