The Shockingly Brutal Decline of Josh Donaldson

Hey everyone!
Ahead of the 2022 season, the Yankees seemingly upgraded their offense with the trade for Josh Donaldson However, 2 years later, Donaldson has declined massively. While it wasn't totally unexpected, this decline has been historically weird.
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[@HufflepuffBaseball42313]

It’s not shocking, this just happens to everyone that joins the Yankees.

[@hannibalbarca4430]

Harrison Bader has done well, knock on wood. He’s also from New York!

[@thomasguglielmo1509]

Sad but true

[@TylerA52903]

Facts bro. Sonny Gray and Lance Lynn were complete flops with us. Hell even Giancarlo Stanton and Gerrit Cole didn’t perform as well as I initially thought they would. I thought we would see the 2017 Stanton and the 2019 Gerrit Cole (lofty expectations I know lol) but we were mistaken and we got downgrades of them

[@ylogan3899]

Exactly

[@Bearsfan15654]

@@TylerA52903 Stanton has been hurt and Cole is on pace for a cy young. What are you talking about.

[@PaulHahrrgis_]

As a Jays fan, I will always cherish 2015-16. Peak Donaldson

[@happyjoe613]

Good times 😢

[@PaulHahrrgis_]

@@happyjoe613 The best times I’ve ever had watching Blue Jays baseball. I was born in 93 so obviously don’t have any memories of 92-93.

[@JustMeELC]

​@josephjudd2956 The down times & the downright hard times make the hope & success times a billion times better! (And I was at games in 92 & 93 ;o) That's a joy bandwagon fans & those only in for the win will never get

[@chiapets2594]

Eww

[@gabeplaysgames6093]

my favourite player of that era

[@RinslerRR]

I still love Donaldson's quote "This isn't the try league, this is the get it done league... and eventually they're gonna find people who are gonna get it done."

[@markkaminski2416]

Big Donaldson fan. Always came ready to play. Like his character in the video game said "FOCUS". I'll never forget the sweeping tag he made to nail a base runner on throw from Jose Bautista.

[@astra8308]

Channeling his inner yoda

[@Money_Ball2023]

No matter, Josh is is special. He revived baseball in Canada. No one beats time, that’s all

[@happyjoe613]

I miss that 2015 team 😢

[@formulahank1250]

That’s what people seem to forget. As much as I love Jose and Edwin, their peaks weren’t even enough to draw 30,000 a night in attendance. Donaldson comes in and he brings us back to relevance

[@matthewbarbosa2977]

As a jays fan, I'll always rate him for bringing excitement back to Toronto baseball and ending our 20 year playoff drought

[@am_singh4525]

Donaldson and Joey bats were must watch tv no cap

[@brandon3777]

And pillar

[@Aiden.scott03]

A bit more weird bad luck is that nearly all of his home runs this season came in losses, meaning that they are basically worthless

[@unleashthefury111]

Also nobody was ever on base they were all solo shots when it didn't matter anyways

[@lurkintomgaming397]

Except for the home run I saw in person he hit against the Chicago cubs. First Yankees game in my life. I’m a Red Sox fan and wore a NASCAR shirt to the game. It was an awful day being surrounded by Yankees fans and they won which made it even worse.

[@SportStorm23]

@unleashthefury111 I noticed that, pretty crazy because he always hit in the middle of the lineup

[@ItsRevival]

​@@lurkintomgaming397 I presume you went for the Cubs?

[@TomKite51]

@@lurkintomgaming397 thats what you get for wearing a Dick Trickle shirt to a baseball game. Blind Donkey Kong ends up finding his bananas.

[@dylanortiz932]

I remember when we signed him and I knew it was a mistake. I really didn’t want to get rid of Gio. People shit on me, saying Donaldson was still good and that the twins got fleeced. I still think Donaldson was one of Cashman’s worst moves.

[@jaymesonbell8040]

I didn't not think Donaldson would be his old MVP Self but I absolutely loved the trade because i thought he would bring a certain amount of energy and fire that this team desperately needed. I definitely did not see this coming. Guess I was wrong

[@GeraldM_inNC]

I knew he was in decline but I guessed he had two more passable years left in him. I guessed wrong.

[@Mandop21]

I’m sorry but im glad. He’s the most horrendous, lock room cancer in all of baseball

[@ghostofmoredishesmorebitch1507]

He's played gold glove d, definitely not one of the worst

[@Michael-ck3bq]

2nd worst right behind Gallo only good thing about that trade was Ikf

[@joshuapatrick682]

also, the dude lasted til he was 35...and it's not like he's a corner outfielder either. he played one of the most physical positions and hit over 900 for half a decade, pretty damn impressive.

[@GeraldM_inNC]

He was in sharp decline by 32-33, and that's awfully young for a third baseman. Shortstops and catchers, yeah, they're often done by 32-33.

[@masonworrall1194]

⁠@@GeraldM_inNCdude hit almost 40 homers at age 33, Then proceeded to have multiple 800+ ops seasons at 34 and 35, how is that a sharp decline?

[@GeraldM_inNC]

@@masonworrall1194 Hitting homers is pretty much all he's done since 2017. Ever since then his b.a. & doubles dropped enormously. How can you deny that?

[@kendricksmith4708]

It’s his swing style. He believes in swinging all out no matter the count, no matter the score. I would think that would way on the body

[@GeraldM_inNC]

@Rrabows His b.a. and doubles take a sharp nosedive but that's OK by you because of the OPS. It just goes to show what a BS stat OPS is.

[@GeraldM_inNC]

Every athlete ages differently. Some have gradual declines, others suddenly and abruptly drop off a cliff. Unfortunately for Cashman, JD and LeMahieu dropped off a cliff and did so while nowhere near 40. Anybody over 30 could have the same thing happen to him. These long term contracts that are paying athletes into their 40s are going to be destroying many teams in another five years.

[@ghostofmoredishesmorebitch1507]

Jd is near 40 tho lol

[@jakester5272]

im pretty sure Donaldson turns 38 this year

[@boii9381]

Jd is 37

[@dukedematteo1995]

His wasn't long term. Dude lost a little bat speed, he's 37. So what? This ain't the 90s, its a very unforgiving time to be an aging batter, the avg FB is 94mph, and you'll be seeing 98mph+ every night past the 6th inning, plus a ton of sliders from right handed pitching. I hope JD can get back out there and help the Yankees with a postseason berth and hopefully shut some fans up with a few Oct jacks.

[@alek276]

Loved watching this guy play for the 2019 Atlanta Braves.

[@terryc.3624]

He could play---father has caught up to him.......now the sports writers are having a field day crapping all over him...FU dick heads....

[@IsaacParent]

Your videos on historic and unique baseball moments are unmatched in brilliance and infallibility. It is evident that you love your work passionately. Thank you very much!

[@SportStorm23]

That means a lot, thank you for watching!

[@IsaacParent]

You're welcome!

[@TheBigTimeChicken]

JD's Blue Jays run was something special! JD, Jose Bautista, Edwin, and TuLo were a scary line up

[@samuelcolby7786]

He’ll forever be a legend with blue jays fans. Wasn’t the longest tenured but the level of excitement he brought was next level

[@Tr_1391]

I can't believe Cashman actually said with a straight face that the Yankees didn't have the budget to sign a big free agent.

[@ryanwells743]

Actually it's kinda true because Hal doesn't want luxury tax

[@Tr_1391]

@ryanwells743 it's still disingenuous to pretend they don't have the money to go after big free agents

[@ryanwells743]

@@Tr_1391 yeah

[@ra0929]

Cashman has been running that line for a few years now. Even when the Yankees reset their luxury tax rate, and were expected to make a run at Bryce Harper, they were talking about their payroll budget.

[@katherineberger6329]

Especially since the Twins turned around and used the money they saved on Donaldson to sign Correa.

[@Gweb52]

It’s almost like the GM of the Yankees is terrible at his job

[@jojonium64]

Ah yes, Donaldson is exactly how it feels to be a Yankees fan these days... past glories.

[@c.jarmstrong3111]

He was such a stud on the jays. I miss that 2015-2016 team, still wish David Price didn't choke and cost us the playoffs

[@charlievidal1]

The comparison between Donaldson and ARod is not fair to ARod. Donaldson fell off in his age 36 season (2022 - .682 OPS and 95 OPS+) while ARod maintained an OPS+ of at least 100 until his age 40 season when he retired midway through the season.

[@pbcash7788]

Big Donaldson fan even though he’s never played for my Dodgers. Just wanted to add that a lot of the negative press about him came from his days on the A’s, and he was totally in the right to publicly diss that organization. Sad that his career is probably done but I’ll always remember him as a big time player.

[@dominickdarpino5584]

as a life long yankee fan you know when some player, who historically ALWAYS kicks your ass, joins the team, they go downhill fast. with a few exceptions obviously.

[@vinloin]

happy to say i saw donaldson’s #1 moment as yankee with his walk off ultimate grandslam last year

[@bigcocjoc8432]

Ill always root for the player that made me fall in love with baseball. Those 15-16 years were so special

[@jayjay-jl7hl]

It all started with Cashman's refusal to admit he made a mistake with Sanchez. They should have just DFAed him and keep Urshella. Urshella is way better than Donaldson and it would have saved money.

[@GeraldM_inNC]

He thought IKF was the shortstop for the future and he was willing to swallow JD's contract to get him.

[@FIREGURU]

Thanks for the content. As an A's fan, I enjoyed watching Donaldson emerge and evolve. He came up as a catcher and then made the switch. A hard ass but, I think that was his edge.

[@louisminati]

You dont want him to do anything too clutch in the playoffs. Otherwise, you may accidentally hire him as a manager someday.

[@Roy_270]

Lmao

[@lindamorton2066]

I really liked Josh when he was with the Blue Jays! I wish him well!

[@stevehill150]

Will always love him as an A’s, although it’s speculated him having issue with management. It was hard to see him win the MVP the next year with the Jays, as he still had a few years on his contract with Oakland. Still, he will always be one of my favorite Oakland player in the 2010s. Oh, and I love what he did in ATL in his short stint, especially since I was living there during the time.

[@ra0929]

Not only has Donaldson's decline been problematic, it seems the Org isnt too high on Peraza at 3B. Reminds me of the time when they played Posada over calling up Jesus Montero. And we saw how well that turned out once he became a full time starter. I guess the prospects aren't as strong as the hype.

[@matttrembley8584]

The yankess signed Donaldson to a multi year deal starting at age 36. Did they think he was going to get better?

[@GeraldM_inNC]

Didn't they just absorb the long term contract he already had via the trade?

[@mariokart9227]

@@GeraldM_inNCfrom what I remember they traded for him when he had 2 years left on his deal with the twins

[@GeraldM_inNC]

@@mariokart9227 Two years plus a team option/buyout for a third year.

[@ngarcia103]

3:49 - "Nonetheless, the Yankees miraculously qualified for a wild card spot" My Blue Jays were on the wrong end of that miracle, missing the playoffs by 1 game despite a 91 win season. All because we took early season games for granted...

[@SportStorm23]

I remember making a vid on that 2021 Blue Jays team. AL East was crazy that year

[@carlpacquing2575]

How is a .076 BABIP even possible, lol?!

[@bfly6984]

Arod comparison to Donaldson is crazy

[@matthewcouch6070]

A real MVP for the Jays I love the guy to this day

[@assaultx7365]

Favorite player of all time, glad you did a video on him. Thank you continue the great work!

[@joshuapatrick682]

anyone really surprised that a big guy with a violent swing who doesn't have an athletic body style had such a quick "prime"? you shouldn't be. Dude's gonna make a hell of a hitting coach in 2-3 years.

[@cptsparklfingerz9210]

Tim Anderson was calling himself the next Jackie Robinson. JD called him exactly what he calls himself and the moron got butthurt. Yet Donaldson is the bad guy thru that. Makes no sense

[@SlickTrix33]

I love how your A-Rod decline includes his post injury 2015 where he had a 130 OPS+. That's not anywhere close to unplayable.

[@0thers1d3]

Weird seeing him in a Brewers uniform. Glad he's with us.

[@SportStorm23]

8/9/23 Update: - Due to a copyright claim on a 10 second clip that started at 0:14, I had cut that section from the video. That's why the video starts a bit clunky now. - Before the clip, I said Donaldson's batting average heading into the at bat was .127. The clip showed Donaldson striking out and receiving a chorus of boos. - Here's the clip: twitter.com/TalkinYanks/status/1672420819979444224 Another 8/9/23 Update: -Due to another copyright claim at 12:08, I had to remove another clip. -Here's what I said: "Clearly, these oddities are due to the small sample size, but with the high likelihood of his calf injury ending his 2023 season, it’s possible we’ve seen the last of Donaldson in a big league uniform. A memorable career statistically, but not without controversy due to his outspoken nature."

[@lurkintomgaming397]

It’s crazy I was just at a Yankees game and he came up to bat and I said out loud “ wow .146 batting average that’s absolutely awful he should retire” and he hit a home run the next pitch and a Yankees fan turned around to me and said “yeah that’s why we keep him” and smirked. That’s the Yankees attitude about him. Awful player now but like 12 out of his total 18 hits are home runs. I love his career and enjoyed all the shit he did, until he went to New York of course where he has been awful which everyone saw coming. I wish he didn’t suck and didn’t play for the Yankees. Really cool dude great story love his ‘fuck you attitude’

[@dukedematteo1995]

He doesn't suck. He was smoking the ball this season just hit into terrible luck...He had a .075 BABIP. That's the unluckiest in baseball by a mile.

[@seplays2280]

The difference is Arod was 40 and had previously put up a very solid age 39 season. I’ll admit I’m bias as a huge arod fan but I feel like Alex really didn’t have a sharp decline. He had some injury issues and ofc the PED suspension but aside from his 2016 season he always produced on the field

[@stevestiflerrr1317]

I agree.. Yankees fucked him over

[@paulpremack4915]

Absolute facts. Cannot compare Donaldson to arod

[@dukedematteo1995]

ARod had that hip injury that sapped his power by age 34, then he tried juicing to get back on pace with Bonds and got caught. Donaldson 22-23 was no where as bad as ARod in 2016.

[@stevenbradley5032]

It’s always weird hearing about Brandon Drury when watching baseball videos because I went to school with him and we played high school ball together. We all knew he was going to be in the big leagues. He was crazy good and dominant all around.

[@jammin4284]

Arod and Donaldson are in no way related... even their late career decline

[@yenep]

Was so excited when he came to the twins, sad to see what has followed :(

[@adamlauer1096]

Also JD is not even close to A-Rod terrible comparison 😂

[@JackTuretzky]

I rlly like ur videos and they’ve been a good distraction from the Mets season. I just want to point out that at 0:16 the sentence is cut into another one. Really good video tho and keep it up

[@seanwall2846]

Gio urshela is heavily needed on this yankees team

[@rustyshackelford4224]

How come?

[@dukedematteo1995]

No he's not. Has no power, doesn't walk and bats righty.

[@edsonbojorquez2913]

Arod played for the Yankees from 2004 to 2016, you cannot compare them as Yankees, Donaldson was a bat decision from the start, as well as keeping hicks and know need to get rid of stanton and need to evaluate if rizzo is still good for the team

[@DodgerJim]

Cool vid. Idk what has happened to Donaldson. Really messed up. I did not know that ARod retired mideast in 2014! That's wild man. Thanks cool vid. Love baseball and love your channel!

[@DodgerJim]

**2016** OOPS!@

[@SportStorm23]

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed

[@asalvato1004]

I’m a Yankees fan but thought the guy was overrated even before he was on the Yankees and wasn’t happy when we traded for him.

[@dukedematteo1995]

Donaldson had an .075 BABIP bro...by far the unluckiest in the league. His "expected" was about .225-.230 and if hes hitting HRs, which he was, thats fine. A full 2023, JD would have hit about 30 jacks, hit .230 and had like a 107 OPS+ with a fair share of strikeouts. Thats serviceable for a one year contract. Good video tho...You were fair with including the BABIP and bad luck this year. Very strange year.

[@5starryansl]

The Bringer of Pain. 😣

[@michaelbaucom4019]

He got old. Nothing more, nothing less, the injuries are a symptom of being old

[@ngarcia103]

I think someone on twitter made a compilation of him either taking or whiffing on pitches right down the middle...

[@kiefernaysmith1160]

Now that he’s retired. Just wanna say, Josh will forever be my favorite 3rd basemen and always my number #20

[@ticnatz]

The Yuckees have a very long history of strange late career signings. Donaldson is just one.

[@MD-jz7xx]

Going to be a vital part to the brewers championship. Bookmark this

[@Parlimant_Strifey]

his stats are fine according to present day GM logic, you want a 3 outcome hitter, here is an example of exactly what they want. Blame the GMs, don't blame Donaldson for adapting to their demands.

[@TheCutter123]

the yankees love picking up players that are about to go downhill, mostly just because they are past their prime already.

[@stephenmilburn7622]

What is all this armor for on Donaldson? With his almost nothing at the plate, what pitcher isn't going after the strikeout or ground out?

[@jeremyjones2191]

I'm a lifetime yankees fan but it seems like we're the team that great players go to die! We have very bad luck with high dollar veterans

[@rustyshackelford4224]

Randy Johnson anyone?

[@thisismyyoutube1421]

A-Rod really declined. He only hit 33 home runs in his age 39-40 season 😒

[@PC-dh7mu]

I've watched every one of Donaldson's at-bats as a Yankee. I now have the pleasure of watching him goof off in the dugout as he "recovers" from his "injury". People love to pile on and say he's washed up. But maybe, just maybe, this September he'll be back as twice the player he was during his MVP season...is what I'd say if I'd just suffered a massive head injury. I do admit he was the best part of a twice-rain delayed blowout to the Cardinals earlier this year. Came in to save a bullpen arm and threw some decent stuff in the mid 80s. Levity in a loss.

[@charlielan9287]

Something about playing in front of a Yankees fanbase turns aging superstars into absolute crap.

[@tristonwebb7045]

I have that same Babip numbers when I play mlb the show on those days

[@royrose_]

The level of decline is a lot but not shocking

[@senorsuave]

Way off about ARod. One-time MVP Donaldson will never be considered anywhere close to the generational talent that ARod was

[@mp3_yt]

as a yankees fan, watching donaldson was painful. like how do you go from one of the best teams in baseball to trotting out a washed up bat everyday. i dont understand why the front office doesnt make necessary changes to WIN. its always “playoffs” and not “lets be the best team in baseball” anymore

[@alecjoss]

Donaldson is 37? Time flies and I feel old

[@rustyshackelford4224]

Agreed

[@katherineberger6329]

The Twins fleeced the Yankees in that deal. We got rid of one dude who was about to become TR@$H and one dude that looked really good but is in fact trash, and got a year of decent production out of Urshela and a Sanchez who, while mediocre, gave Ryan Jeffers a chance to develop into a very good catcher.

[@aegisofhonor]

if you think the Yankees are having problems at 3rd base, check out the Dodgers issues at 2nd base. That's been a revolving door for a decade now.

[@gretz5792]

Imagine booing your own team's player... Not surprising though. Yanks and Dodgers fans exhibit this garbage behavior constantly.

[@dzanier]

His getting hurt was a blessing. Given the way things are now, the Yanks would’ve practically been obligated to DFA or release him. We still need help and need Stanton to be better, RIzzo too, but simply not having to worry about what to do with Donaldson makes many, many things easier. He wasn’t tradeable, and even if he didn’t play, he’d have occupied a roster spot, and that would’ve been like having a corpse on the roster.

[@stephenmilburn7622]

How often does this have to happen? It's almost every time teams sign these players halfway through a career to stupid money they usually decline with only a glimpse of what they were before. Just enough not to be cut.

[@r0ss0527]

Yoan Moncada will be a Yankee next year. Sadly I’m a white sox fan and Yankees will steal and make moncada into the best 3B in the league

[@raggamuffin2682]

0:13 you messed up with your editing

[@BenD88343]

JD is 1 for 2 with a hit and a run so far this October. Can't say the same about any NYY.

[@Tsuny999]

Is this surprising hes been on the decline and injury prone since being traded from Toronto and hes not getting younger

[@tomfoolery5680]

Couldn't think of a guy that deserves it more

[@scottking9333]

I think he just needs to get out of New York. We’ve seen it happen with Hicks and Gallo who were hated there, then figure it out elsewhere.

[@itsnothappyhour5641]

He’s Nuke or Nothing reminds of Chris Davis except he isn’t hitting Chris Davis Nukes

[@pmsports85]

I despised this trade from the get go. The only good part of this trade was getting rid of Sanchez and as of now IKF is trying to make his case as a positive in what we received, but other then that I was beyond pissed that we traded GIo for this 36 year old washed up bum. This trade resulted in me making a KZbin video on this.

[@__rubioo]

fast forward now we got smooth jazz 🎷

[@madrid1010]

The only one who didnt see this coming was cashman

[@wadexyz]

Well it's injuries, plain and simple. But c'mon, even this year.....the guy still hit 10 dingers in 106 ABs....why was EVERYONE fixated on his average for such a small sample size? Don't they teach stats anymore? if he gets 400 ABs, you know the average will end up north of .200.

[@arcadeperfectreviews2653]

I've just come back to being a baseball fan after 10 years of not caring. WTF are all these new stats? Sweet spot%? Line drive %? When I was watching it was Hits, Runs, RBI, Batting average, and On base %.

[@Excalibur13]

Donaldson was completely right for calling out Tim Anderson for proclaiming himself as one of the best 2B and players all time. You don't see Mookie Betts trotting out and saying he's Willie Mays. Complete lack of respect for the legends, let alone what Jackie Robinson has done for the game.

[@Meerkat2112]

It’s even funnier when you realize Tim plays shortstop. He doesn’t even play second base! But he compares himself to Jackie, a SECOND BASEMAN. It’s ok if Tim calls himself Jackie, but dammit if Josh calls him Jackie! This was the one time I agreed with Josh.

[@colethorpe5068]

What I'm understanding from this is that the Yankees third base position is cursed

[@redeyejedi4400]

Braves were smart not to pay him they got everything he had left in the tank.

[@stevengraham3138]

He’s has some great years but one year middle to career did he get injuried? He had a big year the next year with atl then nothing

[@wordcripple3174]

He's 37 almost 38 what do you expect? Chuck Knoblaugh suffered the same fate and retired at 34, Bernie Williams retired at 38.

[@SenorTortas]

He's 37 years old. Not that shocking actually

[@GeraldM_inNC]

But he's been in steep decline for years.

[@SenorTortas]

@@GeraldM_inNCit's really been only the last two years though

[@letsTACOboutGoals]

The Yankees are a horrible team to play for. The only thing that used to attract players was the high probability of a ring and money... Now with replay review, however, calls can't go in the Yankees favor and it's much harder for them to cheat their way into a ring hence their recent ring less years.

[@rustyshackelford4224]

The New York Yankees are the FC Barcelona of MLB. Both teams love bribing officiating for cheap championship wins in their respective sports.

[@natedawg3654]

Not shocking. During his MVP season you could tell that he was pushing his body to it's absolute limit. It's not effortless for him like with the truly great players. Never expected his game to age well

[@jaredstein4945]

Saw this video coming.

[@wyattspop]

Weird is just a euphemism for pathetic in this instance, Donaldson has been a weight around the Yankees neck since they signed him. He literally set records for his poor batting, I'd want to return part of my salary if I gave a team so little production. His leaving will only help NY have a chance to play Oct baseball (Rizzo too, but it appears he was suffering post-concussion syndrome)

[@yukikimura8204]

Can you do a video on the 2014 Angels

[@pabblo101]

Cashman is one of the most idiotic GMs in all of sports. Unlimited amounts of money and only one World Series to show for it. Not counting the late 1990s dynasty since that roster was already built before he took over in the early 2000s. His tenure will gonna go down as one of the worst in Yankees history during my lifetime and I don't see him retiring or getting fired anytime soon.

[@robtg9672]

So you talked about ARod in the beginning then didn't bring him up or show the similar decline line.

[@kenjiujitsu2024]

add Giancarlo Stanton to the list. Yankees is where players go to die or retire