Blue Jays 3B Josh Donaldson loses arbitration case
Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson lost his arbitration hearing with the team on Friday, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
Donaldson, who was traded to the Blue Jays from the Oakland Athletics in November, was reportedly seeking $5.725 million. He will instead receive $4.3 million and is under team control through 2018.
Donaldson was selected to his first All-Star Game in 2014, hitting .255 with 29 home runs and 98 RBI over 158 games with the A's. He was traded in the deal that sent third baseman Brett Lawrie, right-hander Kendall Graveman, lefthander Sean Nolin and minor-league shortstop Franklin Barreto to Oakland. Over his four-year career, Donaldson is a .268 hitter with 63 home runs and 228 RBI.
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After the trade, A's general manager Billy Beane denied that he traded Donaldson in response to a rumored argument between the two during the season. The San Francisco Chroniclereported that Donaldson asked for a couple of days off to recover physical and Beane told him he should go on the disabled list if he was injured.
Last week, the Blue Jays lost their arbitration case to Danny Valencia. The infielder was asking for $1.675 million, while Toronto countered with $1.2 million.
Donaldson is the Blue Jays' last player in arbitration.
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