MLB Rumors: The St. Louis Cardinals Could Be the Team to Watch in the Upcoming Josh Donaldson Sweepstakes
Donaldson is currently on track to be a free agent at the end of this season
With the Baltimore Orioles' Manny Machado and the Washington Nationals' Bryce Harper off to huge starts in their walk years, it's easy to forget that there are other notable thumpers who are currently set to also become free agents this offseason, including the Toronto Blue Jays' Josh Donaldson.
To be fair, Donaldson missing some time due to injury has probably affected that a bit, but still, fans should not overlook the 32-year-old third baseman.
While there were rumblings earlier this year that the Blue Jays and Donaldson could come to an agreement on an extension, that has obviously not happened, and so, analysts are now trying to figure out where the former American League MVP could sign this offseason.
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In a recent article, Jon Heyman of the FRS Network pointed to the St. Louis Cardinals as being the favorites to sign Donaldson. Heyman also noted that Cardinals have been linked to Donaldson in the past.
The Cardinals' reported interest in Donaldson is pretty easy to understand given the way their roster is currently set up.
While they have long-term starters for the outfield as well as emerging young players who can handle some of the infield spots, third base may open up soon.
Currently, the Cardinals' depth chart has Matt Carpenter as the team's primary option at third and while he's certainly been productive enough to earn that spot, it's not a lock that he will remain with the team long-term.
Carpenter only has one fully guaranteed year left on his contract after this season, so the Cardinals will need to make a decision on him.
If the Cardinals decide that they want more power production from the hot corner, then they may indeed move on from Carpenter.
Donaldson could then step in as a replacement and immediately bring a new dimension to the lineup. He and Marcell Ozuna could occupy the third and fourth slots in the lineup, and it wouldn't be surprising if those two ended up bashing near 80 home runs over a full season.
Plus, Donaldson's quite the popular player himself, so the Cardinals would likely get a bit of an attendance bump from signing him.
Now as for Donaldson, he's yet to hint at his offseason plans, and at this point, his focus is squarely on getting back to the field and producing again for the Blue Jays.
Taking into account that he will be significantly older than some of the top free agents this winter, Donaldson may look for one monster deal that will last for the rest of his prime.
It's unclear how many teams will be willing to present a monster deal to a free agent on the other side of 30, even to someone as productive as Donaldson has been over the past few seasons. This most recent offseason certainly did not indicate that many teams are eager to do that type of thing.
If the Cardinals are willing to make that monster, however, then they may be the team Donaldson goes to.
