Yoenis Cespedes was moved at the July trade deadline. Jon Lester and Jason Hammel are leaving town as free agents. And now, the Oakland Athletics are moving on from third baseman Josh Donaldson. The club has dealt Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays for a package of four players – major league infielder Brett Lawrie, and prospects Franklin Barreto, Kendall Graveman, and Sean Nolin.
Deal is 4-for-1. Donaldson from #Athletics to #BlueJays for Lawrie, Graveman, Barreto, Nolin.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 29, 2014
Donaldson, who turns 29 in December, had another excellent year with Oakland in 2014. He hit .255/.342/.456 with 29 homers and finished eighth in the AL MVP voting. In 2013, Donaldson burst onto the scene with the A’s by hitting .301/.384/.499 with 24 homers, and finished fourth in the AL MVP voting. He’s also a fantastic defender at third base, despite the lack of Gold Glove hardware in his trophy case, and will take over at the position for Toronto.
Speaking of the Jays, unloading the 24-year old Lawrie is something that would have seemed insane two years ago. But Lawrie has struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness over the past two seasons, playing in just 177 games and hitting only .252/.310/.406 despite getting to play half of his games in the friendly confines of Rogers Centre. The A’s could use him at third to replace Donaldson or at second, where the club hasn’t had a satisfactory answer for years.
Oakland is also getting a lovely trio of prospects in the trade. Barreto is just 18, and hit .311/.384/.481 with low-A Vancouver in 2014. He was the top position player in Toronto’s farm system before the season began. Graveman will turn 24 in December, and flew through the minors in 2014. An eighth-round pick out of Mississippi State in 2013, Graveman began his year with Lansing of the Midwest League. He proceeded to cruise his way to the majors, dominating at each stop along the way. In the minors this season, Graveman threw 167 1/3 innings, struck out 115, and walked 31 while pitching to a 1.83 ERA. Nolin, who turns 25 in December, also made it to the majors in 2014, but he spent the bulk of his year pitching for AAA Buffalo. In 87 1/3 innings there, he struck out 74 and walked 35. He also missed over two months of the season because of a groin strain.
Let’s break this down as simply as possible. Toronto gets a player in Donaldson that shined at the plate despite playing his home games in a cavernous park. Oakland is getting a talented, yet erratic and frail, player who might not be able to handle second base, the club’s biggest weakness. They’re also getting two pitchers that can contribute in 2015, but may not make a massive impact. Barreto is the diamond in the rough, but the absolute earliest he’ll probably contribute is 2017. Not coincidentally, both Lawrie and Donaldson will hit the free agent market following the 2017 season. The A’s will pay less for Lawrie than they would have for Donaldson, but they’re probably going to end up getting much less production, and will more than likely need a caddy for him in the event of an inevitable injury. They’re betting on age, potential, and another change of scenery spurring him to stardom – but as we all know, none of that is guaranteed.
