The New York Yankees’ front staff added a valuable bat through a trade rather than making a bid for one of the top shortstops during the summer. With the acquisition of Josh Donaldson, at least, that was the hope entering into the season.
The Yankees had a good reason to believe that Josh Donaldson needed to be improved on both the offensive and defensive ends of the field. The MVP-type player that the Americans had grown accustomed to seeing in Toronto wasn’t Josh Donaldson. Despite this, his performance over the previous three seasons was far above average and reflected one of the elite third basemen in the American League.
The front management decided to take up Donaldson’s whole contract to demonstrate his high expectations. In addition to his $21.75 million salary for this season and the following one, Donaldson has a $16 million team option with a $6 million buyout for the 2024 campaign. Despite the highlights of the 2022 season, Donaldson has been one of the Yankees defense’s most underwhelming players. His overall performance has stayed good due to his superior glovework. But his bat has consistently performed at or below league average.
Donaldson’s 2022 K% and BB% numbers are 28.1 and 9.1, respectively, well behind his 20.6 and 12.4 career averages. The third baseman for the Bombers was known for repeatedly crushing fastballs, although his SLG against them was only.457. With the least amount of fastballs ever thrown to him, it’s the worst he’s ever experienced (51.5). There is no production when facing breaking balls. The underlying statistics confirm that there is little hope that Donaldson will have a successful season.
Recent trade acquisitions by the Yankees haven’t been very successful in terms of adding hitting. But unlike Donaldson, neither Joey Gallo nor Andrew Benintendi was incarcerated for a lengthy period of time. They are still getting used to life as a Yankee. One cannot but wonder whether the front staff will at the very least consider getting rid of him in the upcoming summer.
That’s significant money for a player who only contributes to one side of the ball. This circumstance sheds light on recent choices that haven’t exactly benefited the Yankees. The front management will probably be able to find a buyer for Donaldson because he ultimately still has enough worth. More so if they’re prepared to pay back a portion of that contract.
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