Josh Donaldson of the New York Yankees has one of the worst MLB contracts
This season, the 37-year-old Donaldson will make $21 million with the Yankees, the same number he made last season when he slashed .222/.308/.374 and posted an OPS+ of 94. Granted, that was the first campaign where Donaldson finished below triple digits in OPS+ since 2012 and Donaldson has already attributed the bad season to the lockout, but there are plenty of people ready to point the finger at Donaldson should the Yankees once again fall short of the Fall Classic this season.
Donaldson slashed just .077/.250/.154 in the ALCS sweep at the hands of the Houston Astros, striking out 10 times in 16 plate appearances during the series. It was far enough away from the start of the season that any talk of the lockout and its effects could be wiped away, so is that the Donaldson who will once again play third base in the Bronx this season? Or is there really a rebound coming as Yankees manager Aaron Boone has said this spring?
One thing is for sure, Donaldson didn’t earn his paycheck in 2022, and there are plenty of reasons to believe he likely won’t do it again in 2023.