Third baseman Josh Donaldson has agreed to a four-year deal with the Minnesota Twins, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan.
It will pay him $84 million over the first four years and includes a $16 million club option with an $8 million buyout. In total, the deal includes $92 million in guaranteed money, with a chance to increase to $104 million in value if Donaldson hits escalators on the option.
Donaldson, 34, is a three-time All-Star and the 2015 American League MVP. He rebounded from two straight injury-riddled seasons to hit .259 with 37 homers and 94 RBIs in 155 games for the Atlanta Braves last season.
The largest free agent contract the Twins ever doled out prior to this was 5 years ago when they signed pitcher Ervin Santana to 4-year, $55 million pact (Joe Mauer's $184 million contract was technically an extension). So this offer to Donaldson exceeds that by $37 million.
This move also serves to undermine many narratives among Twins fans who vent frustrations via Twitter. The prevailing sentiments are "Pohlads are too cheap" or "The front office lies when they say they've made offers to big name free agents, they just want to shut the fans up." But perhaps my favorite conspiracy theory? It has to be fans' insistence that the Twins have a public relations guy whose job is to convey that the team's offers were just shy of what a free agent agreed to elsewhere. With the Donaldson signing, all those chanting points are effectively punctured.
Alas, some people aren't completely fulfilled unless they have something to bitch about. As such, the common retort among naysayers was "What happened to the impact starting pitcher they promised?!?!" While it's true that Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey flat out said that was their top goal just after being knocked out of the postseason (again) by the New York Yankees, such a move has yet to materialize. And while I don't believe the Twins front office is going to stop considering additional acquisitions, upgrading their infield defense (Donaldson statistically is a much more solid third baseman than Miguel Sano, who will now shift to first base) by default improves the potential performance of the pitching staff.
In watching MLB Network last evening in the aftermath of the Donaldson agreement, I caught an interview with an Atlanta sports talk radio host. He indicated that the Braves desperately wanted Donaldson back in the fold but they just weren't willing to give him a fourth year guaranteed. So there ya have it. The Twins actually outbid someone else.
Speaking of MLB Network, the panelists on the show put together a projected Twins batting order for 2020:
Dang. When's Opening Day at Target Field?!?! 💣💣💣
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