Former Athletics third baseman Josh Donaldson announces retirement

Former Oakland Athletics third baseman Josh Donaldson has announced his retirement following 13 seasons in the MLB.

Donaldson was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the first round of the 2007 MLB June Amateur Draft. However, the Cubs would trade him to the A’s in the summer of 2008. He made his major league debut in 2010, playing in 14 games for the A’s.

After spending the 2011 season with the Sacramento River Cats, the then-Triple A affiliate of the Athletics, Donaldson would return to the big league in 2012, where he moved from catcher to third base. He played 158 games for the A’s the following season and in 2014, he made his first All-Star team.

In four seasons with the A’s, he played 405 games, and hit 63 home runs on a .268 BA and a .805 OPS.

April 12, 2013: A’s’ Josh Donaldson walks it off in the bottom of the 12th against the Tigers. pic.twitter.com/Xk63l49oVb

— This Day In Sports Clips (@TDISportsClips) April 12, 2021

It wasn’t long after the A’s traded Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2014 that he won his first, and only, MVP award. During that season, he hit .297 and recorded 41 home runs and 123 RBIs.

The 38-year-old would bounce around the league after five seasons in Toronto, playing for the Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees. Donaldson would end his career with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Donaldson made the announcement on The Mayor’s Office with Sean Casey, saying he dedicated his entire life to the game of baseball but is looking forward to his post-career life with family. He said there were a couple of opportunities to keep playing, but “things weren’t clicking.”

“Things didn’t work out the way they it could have but I’m excited about taking the next chapter. I feel very blessed to play for as long as I got to play,” Donalson told Casey.

2015 AL MVP
3x All-Star
2x Silver Slugger
279 home runs

Congratulations on an outstanding career, Josh Donaldson! pic.twitter.com/0ZQPqlqzm0

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) March 4, 2024

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