Braves new world beckons for Donaldson
Former Jays GM Anthopoulos signs ex-Toronto star to play in Atlanta
Former Toronto Blue Jays all-star third baseman Josh Donaldson has signed a deal with the Atlanta Braves.
According to Ken Rosenthal and others, it’s a one-year free agent contract at US$23 million, pending a physical. The Braves’ general manager is Alex Anthopoulos, who brought the Bringer of Rain to Toronto in November of 2014 from the Oakland A’s. The next year he was named the AL MVP.
The one-year deal with the Braves gives Donaldson the chance to prove that, even though he will turn 33 next month and has a recent history of injuries, he can still be a star infielder and deserves a long-term deal after the 2019 season.
On Aug. 31, the Blue Jays traded Donaldson to the Cleveland Indians for a player to be named later, later revealed to be pitching prospect Julian Merryweather. Merryweather had Tommy John surgery in March, but GM Ross Atkins is hopeful he’ll be ready for spring training in February.
The 6-4, 200-pound right-hander went 7-9 with a 5.32 ERA in 2017 between double-A and triple-A. He didn’t pitch in 2018.
Donaldson has been plagued by injuries the last two seasons. Last season he suffered from dead arm syndrome, shoulder inflammation and a calf strain. He played in 52 games, hitting .246 with eight home runs and an .801 OPS.
BRAVES SIGN McCANN
Catcher Brian McCann has returned to the Atlanta Braves, agreeing to a $2 million, one-year contract.
McCann, who turns 35 in February, is from Duluth, Ga, and was a seven-time all-star with the Braves from 2005-13. He left to sign an $85 million, five-year contract with the New York Yankees and was traded to Houston after the 2016 season following the emergence of Gary Sanchez. McCann helped the Astros win their first World Series title in 2017. He hit .212 with seven homers and 23 RBIs in 63 games last season, missing 53 games because of arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in July.
WORLD SERIES RESIDUALS
A post-season share on World Series champion Boston was worth $416,838, down from a record $438,902 for Houston in 2017.
The commissioner’s office said Monday the Red Sox voted 66 full shares, 10.025 partial shares and eight cash awards. The Astros had 60 full shares, 9.23 partial shares and four cash awards.
The players’ pool was a record $88.19 million, breaking the mark of $84.5 million set last year. A share on the NL champion Dodgers was worth $262,027, up from $259,722 for Los Angeles in 2017.
Full shares were worth $154,656 for Houston, $122,957 for Milwaukee, $43,082 for the New York Yankees, $40,376 for Atlanta, $40,336 for Colorado, $37,040 for Cleveland, $19,760 for Oakland and $16,155 for the Chicago Cubs.
The players’ pool included 50 per cent of the gate receipts from wildcard games and 60 per cent each from the first three games of the Division Series and the first four games of the League Championship Series and World Series.
TWINS CLAIM CRON
The Minnesota Twins have claimed first baseman C.J. Cron off waivers from Tampa Bay, adding an accomplished replacement for the retired Joe Mauer.
Cron batted .253 with 28 doubles, 30 home runs, 74 RBIs and an .816 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in a career-best 2018 season for the Rays, who designated the 28-yearold for assignment last week. Cron made $2.3 million last season and is in his second year of eligibility for salary arbitration.
Cron played his first four majorleague seasons for the Los Angeles Angels, who selected him with the 17th overall pick in the 2011 amateur draft.
With the end of Mauer’s career, the only other primary first baseman on Minnesota’s roster is Tyler Austin, who was acquired in a trade with the New York Yankees last summer.
YANKEES ADD PITCHER
Right-hander Parker Bridwell was claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels by the New York Yankees, who opened a roster spot by designating infielder Ronald Torreyes for assignment.
Bridwell, 27, was 10-3 with a 3.64 ERA in 20 starts and one relief appearance for the Angels in 2017, then missed much of this year because of right elbow inflammation.
He was 1-0 with a 17.55 ERA in one start and four relief appearances over 62/3 innings for the Angels and 1-1 with an 8.68 ERA at triple-A Salt Lake.
Bridwell is 11-3 with a 4.60 ERA for Baltimore and the Angels in 28 games over three seasons. He was designated for assignment last week by the Angels.
The 26-year-old Torreyes was among the most popular players in the Yankees clubhouse, a five-footeight backup often hoisted into the air by teammates to high-five sixfoot-seven Aaron Judge.
Torreyes hit .292 with 36 RBIs in 315 at-bats over 108 games in 2017, but spent much of this year at triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and batted .280 with seven RBIs in 100 at-bats over 41 games for the Yankees.