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When Josh Donaldson makes his return to the show, expect it to be with a uniform other than Toronto. The slugger hasn’t played in a major-league game since sustaining a left calf injury on May 28th. According to Jon Heyman, the veteran is already receiving considerable trade attention:
josh donaldson came through last night's game fine and is going on trade waivers today so he can be traded on Friday's waiver deadline. #STLCards and #Indians seem like logical spots, but sources suggest there are other teams showing some interest.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 29, 2018
After riding the arduous wave that is the 60-DL, Donaldson went 1-for-2 with an RBI in his first rehab assignment appearance yesterday. He also spent five innings at third base, thus igniting the flurry of trade rumors for this Friday’s waiver deadline. Because Friday is the last day and acquired player can be eligible for a postseason roster, teams will have to move fast.
Sportsnet columnist Shi Davidi reported shortly after Heyman’s trade waiver announcement that Donaldson is missing a game tonight due to tightness still in his lower body:
Hearing Josh Donaldson won’t be in the lineup at single-A Dunedin tonight due to soreness in calves and legs. #BlueJays
— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) August 29, 2018
Both St. Louis and Cleveland have all but snatched their respective golden tickets to playoff baseball. Cleveland has their share of offensive reinforcement in Michael Brantley and Francisco Lindor. St. Louis’ has their infield corners taken care of with Matt Adams, Matt Carpenter, and Jedd Gyorko. However both team could use an extra veteran presence both offensively and defensively. Will these two teams take be adding Donaldson to their roster or will we see a dark horse come out of nowhere and scoop the former American League MVP?
The 32-year old is a free agent come the end of this season and is owed $4M by Toronto through the end of 2018. He’ll surely be a player to watch out for during the the hot stove season, but for now it’s about who can sign him for the road to October.