Josh Donaldson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Josh Donaldson |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
Donaldson with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2015
|
|||
| Third baseman | |||
| Born: December 8, 1985 Pensacola, Florida, U.S. |
|||
|
|||
| debut | |||
| April 30, 2010, for the Oakland Athletics | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| October 1, 2023, for the Milwaukee Brewers | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .261 | ||
| Home runs | 279 | ||
| Runs batted in | 816 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
Josh Donaldson is a former American professional baseball player who was a third baseman. He played for 13 years in Major League Baseball (MLB) with several teams, including the Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, and New York Yankees. Donaldson was known for his powerful hitting and strong defense. He was even named the American League's Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2015. He retired from baseball in March 2024.
The Chicago Cubs first chose Donaldson in the 2007 MLB draft after he played college baseball at Auburn University. He started his MLB career with the Athletics in 2010 as a catcher. Later, he changed his position to third base and became an All-Star in 2014.
After the 2014 season, Donaldson was traded to the Blue Jays. In 2015, he was chosen as a starter for the 2015 MLB All-Star Game, receiving the most fan votes of any player. That same year, he won the American League Most Valuable Player award. Donaldson also won the Silver Slugger Award and led the American League in RBIs (runs batted in) and runs scored.
Donaldson later played for the Cleveland Indians (2018), Atlanta Braves (2019), Minnesota Twins (2020–2021), New York Yankees (2022–2023), and Milwaukee Brewers (2023) before he retired.
Contents
Early Life and High School Baseball
Josh Donaldson was born in Pensacola, Florida, on December 8, 1985. He was raised by his mother, Lisa French. When he was very young, at just 18 months old, he was featured on a local TV station because of his "picture perfect" golf swing! Growing up, Josh was a big fan of the Atlanta Braves baseball team.
Donaldson went to Pace High School for his sophomore year, where he played varsity baseball. His mother then moved him to Faith Academy in Mobile, Alabama, so he could play with his friend, P. J. Walters. At Faith Academy, Josh was a talented athlete, playing football, basketball, and baseball.
In baseball, he played shortstop and pitcher. As a senior, he was named the Alabama Gatorade Player of the Year. He batted an amazing .515 and helped Faith Academy win a state championship. He set school records for hits (55), triples (6), doubles (21), and RBIs (54) in a single season. In football, he played wide receiver, defensive back, and punter, setting a school record with 11 interceptions in one season.
College Baseball Career
Donaldson went to Auburn University, where he continued to play college baseball for the Auburn Tigers baseball team in the Southeastern Conference. He played as both a catcher and a third baseman.
In his first year in 2005, Donaldson started 39 games at third base, hitting .294 with seven home runs. He also began learning to play catcher. In his second year, he hit .276 and led his team with ten home runs. He was also good at catching, throwing out 15 of 38 players trying to steal bases. In the summer of 2006, Donaldson played for the Harwich Mariners in a special summer league called the Cape Cod Baseball League, where he was an All-Star and hit .302.
Professional Baseball Journey
Drafted and Minor League Years
The Chicago Cubs picked Josh Donaldson as a catcher in the first round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft. In his first year in the minor leagues, he played 53 games and had a great batting average of .335 with nine home runs. He also walked more times than he struck out, which shows he had a good eye for pitches.
In July 2008, the Cubs traded Donaldson to the Oakland Athletics. He continued to play well in the minor leagues for the Athletics' teams, hitting .330 with nine home runs in 47 games for the Advanced-A Stockton Ports. In 2009, he played a full season with the Double-A Midland RockHounds, hitting .270 with nine home runs and 91 RBIs.
Oakland Athletics (2010, 2012–2014)
Donaldson made his first appearance in the major leagues on April 30, 2010, for the Oakland Athletics. He filled in for an injured catcher. The very next day, he hit his first major league hit, which was a two-run home run! In 2010, he played 14 games and had five hits. After that, he spent more time in the minor leagues, playing for the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats.
In 2012, Donaldson officially changed his main position from catcher to third base. He started the season as the everyday third baseman for the A's. He helped the A's reach the postseason that year, finishing with nine home runs and a .241 batting average.
On April 12, 2013, Donaldson hit his first career walk-off home run, which means he hit a home run that instantly won the game for his team. He hit his first career grand slam on June 7, hitting a home run with the bases loaded, bringing in four runs. Major League Baseball named him the American League Player of the Month for September because of his excellent hitting. He finished the 2013 season with 24 home runs, 93 RBIs, and a .301 batting average.
In 2014, Donaldson was chosen for his first All-Star team as the starting third baseman for the American League. He hit another walk-off home run on July 17 to win a game against the Baltimore Orioles. Donaldson also won his first Fielding Bible Award for being an excellent defensive third baseman. In 2014, he set new career highs with the Athletics, hitting 29 home runs and 98 RBIs.
Toronto Blue Jays (2015–2018)
2015: An MVP Season
On November 28, 2014, Donaldson was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. In February 2015, he went through a process called salary arbitration, where a decision was made about his salary for the upcoming season.
On June 1, Donaldson was named the American League Player of the Week for his amazing performance, hitting .440 with six home runs. Fans and even celebrities like Don Cherry and Stephen Amell started a campaign to vote him into the 2015 MLB All-Star Game. It worked! On July 5, he was announced as the starting third baseman for the All-Star game, receiving a record-breaking 14,090,188 votes. He also took part in the Home Run Derby.
By the end of August, many people were saying Donaldson was having one of the best seasons in Blue Jays history. Fans started chanting "M-V-P! M-V-P!" when he came up to bat. On September 7, he hit his 100th career home run. He finished the 2015 regular season with a .297 batting average, 122 runs scored, 41 doubles, 41 home runs, and 123 RBIs. His performance was so good that he had the highest "Wins Above Replacement" (WAR) in Blue Jays history for a single season.
Donaldson won many awards for his incredible 2015 season. He received the Sporting News MLB Player of the Year Award, the American League Hank Aaron Award, and the American League third baseman's Silver Slugger Award. He also won Players Choice Awards for both Major League Player of the Year and American League Outstanding Player. On November 19, 2015, Josh Donaldson was officially named the 2015 American League Most Valuable Player (AL MVP).
2016: Another Strong Year
In February 2016, Donaldson signed a two-year contract extension with the Blue Jays. He continued his high level of play from his MVP season. He won another Player of the Week Award in June. On July 7, he was named a reserve for the American League in the 2016 All-Star Game. By the All-Star break, Donaldson was batting .304 with 23 home runs and 63 RBIs. He had also scored 80 runs, which was a new Blue Jays record for runs scored before the All-Star break. On August 28, Donaldson hit three home runs in a single game for the first time in his career. He finished the 2016 season with a .284 batting average, 37 home runs, and 99 RBIs.
Even with a hip injury late in the season, Donaldson played very well in the Blue Jays' playoff series against the Texas Rangers. He hit for a .500 batting average and scored the winning run in a dramatic play in the final game. Donaldson won his second straight Silver Slugger Award and finished fourth in the American League MVP voting.
2017 and 2018 Seasons
In 2017, Donaldson had some injuries, including a strained right calf. He returned to play in late May and finished the season strong, hitting .302 with 22 home runs from August 1 onwards.
On January 12, 2018, Donaldson signed a one-year, $23 million contract with the Blue Jays. He dealt with more injuries in 2018, including shoulder inflammation and a calf strain, which limited his playing time.
Cleveland Indians (2018)
On August 31, 2018, the Blue Jays traded Donaldson to the Cleveland Indians. He joined the team and made his debut on September 11, 2018.
Atlanta Braves (2019)
_(cropped).jpg)
On November 26, 2018, Donaldson signed a one-year contract with the Atlanta Braves. In 2019, he batted .259 with 37 home runs and 94 RBIs. He was also an excellent defensive player at third base, with a high "Defensive Runs Saved" rating. He was named the 2019 NL Comeback Player of the Year for his strong return to form.
Minnesota Twins (2020–2021)
On January 22, 2020, Donaldson signed a four-year contract with the Minnesota Twins. In his first season with the Twins, he played in 28 games due to injuries. On May 29, 2021, Donaldson scored the 2,000,000th run in MLB history!
New York Yankees (2022–2023)
.png)
On March 13, 2022, the Twins traded Donaldson to the New York Yankees. On August 17, Donaldson hit a walk-off grand slam in the tenth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays, winning the game 8–7. This was a very rare achievement, making him only the third Yankees player to hit an "ultimate grand slam" (a walk-off grand slam when his team was down by three runs).
In 2022, he batted .222 with 15 home runs and 62 RBIs. In 2023, Donaldson played in 33 games before a right calf injury ended his season. He was released by the Yankees in August 2023.
Milwaukee Brewers (2023)
On August 31, 2023, Donaldson signed with the Milwaukee Brewers and played a few games for their minor league team before joining the major league roster on September 11. He played 17 games for the Brewers, hitting 3 home runs. After the season, he became a free agent.
On March 4, 2024, Josh Donaldson announced that he was retiring from baseball.
Awards and Achievements
Josh Donaldson earned many awards and achieved several impressive feats during his baseball career:
- Awards
- American League Most Valuable Player Award (2015)
- Hank Aaron Award (2015)
- 2× Home Run Derby participant (2014, 2015)
- Fielding Bible Award (2014)
- 3× MLB All-Star (2014–2016)
- MLB Player of the Month (September 2013)
- 4× MLB Player of the Week (April 28, 2013; May 31, 2015; August 9, 2015; June 19, 2016)
- Players Choice Awards for American League Outstanding Player (2015)
- Players Choice Awards for Major League Player of the Year (2015)
- 2× Silver Slugger Award at third base (2015, 2016)
- Sporting News Major League Player of the Year (2015)
- NL Comeback Player of the Year (2019)
- Accomplishments
- Blue Jays' record for highest single-season total WAR (8.8 in 2015)
- Blue Jays' record for most runs scored before All-Star break (80 in 2016)
- Hit three home runs in one game (August 28, 2016)
- Scored MLB's 2 millionth run (May 29, 2021)
- Hit the 31st ultimate grand slam in MLB history.
Personal Life
Josh Donaldson's father watched him play baseball in person for the first time on September 13, 2013. Josh played well that day, hitting a home run and a double.
Donaldson loves to play golf. He even appeared on the Golf Channel in 2014 and hit a golf ball an estimated 309 yards in a simulator!
Donaldson is a big fan of the History channel TV series Vikings. In January 2016, he even had a guest appearance in the show's fourth season as a character named "Hoskuld." His nickname, "The Bringer of Rain," was inspired by a TV show.
Donaldson and his fiancé, Briana Miller, welcomed their first child, a daughter, in November 2020. The couple got married in January 2024, and Josh shared the news after he announced his retirement from baseball.
See also
In Spanish: Josh Donaldson para niños
- List of Major League Baseball annual runs batted in leaders
- List of Major League Baseball annual runs scored leaders
- List of Major League Baseball career home run leaders
- List of Toronto Blue Jays team records
- Toronto Blue Jays award winners and league leaders
