The good, the bad and the ugly of Yankees' Josh Donaldson, on and off the field
NEW YORK – Brian Cashman put together a 92-win team last year that barely slipped into the postseason’s door and was quickly booted from Major League Baseball's tournament.
And even the Yankees’ GM had to admit his club was unwatchable for long stretches of 2021.
There were a lot of elements missing from that club, including some fire. Along with more athleticism and fewer empty at-bats, the Yankees needed a spark.
Upon his surprising arrival in pinstripes, Josh Donaldson was almost immediately praised for providing an undercurrent of daily intensity.
But Donaldson’s brand of fire also comes with a warning label.
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'JACKIE': Suspending Josh Donaldson was easy. Overcoming hateful speech in baseball will be harder.
He has burned bridges, ticked off teammates and caused controversy over his career – the latest episode being Monday’s one-game MLB suspension for comments deemed as "disrespectful and in poor judgment" toward an opponent.
“I am not a Donaldson fan,’’ White Sox closer Liam Hendriks told NBC Sports Chicago last year, speaking about his ex-teammate on the 2015 Toronto Blue Jays, the year Donaldson won the AL MVP award.
“On the field, one of the greatest. You want him on the team behind you. But I saw behind the curtain too much and I’m not a fan.’’
When Gerrit Cole was a Josh Donaldson target
Before Donaldson ever slipped on a Yankees uniform, Cashman had to make sure that his highest-paid player was OK with bringing the "Bringer of Rain" to the Bronx.
“I’ll be fine,’’ Gerrit Cole told Cashman, who then completed a March trade that also brought Isiah Kiner-Falefa to the Yankees for Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela.
Donaldson called out Cole last season as a prominent figure in the “sticky stuff’’ debate, following MLB’s crackdown on pitchers’ use of illegal substances to grip a baseball.
But Cole wasn’t Donaldson’s only target, having also created a stir with the White Sox last summer.
Lucas Giolito called Donaldson “classless’’ among other things, for a trash-talking reference to sticky stuff, directed toward Minnesota’s dugout, following a home run off the Chicago starter.
“Don’t go across home plate and do all that, just come to me,’’ Giolito told The Athletic, whereupon Donaldson took Giolito up on that direct approach in a parking lot confrontation.
White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal told the Chicago Tribune that Donaldson’s actions “didn’t go unnoticed. It definitely fires you up.
“If anything, thanks to him for kind of getting us awakened a little bit.’’
The controversy with Tim Anderson
With that fire in Donaldson, the flames go in every direction.
There was already that bad blood simmering with the White Sox when Donaldson put a hard tag on Tim Anderson on May 13, shoving him off the bag and causing the benches to clear.
After tensions sparked again Saturday at Yankee Stadium – following Grandal’s on-field confrontation with Donaldson – a root cause of Chicago’s anger was revealed.
Donaldson claimed his calling Anderson “Jackie’’ was an inside joke between the two, a reference to a Sports Illustrated article in which Anderson made a self-comparison to the great Jackie Robinson.
Anderson, who is Black, called it disrespectful and agreed with White Sox manager Tony La Russa’s opinion that it was a racist remark.
MLB found the comment “disrespectful and in poor judgment’’ and suspended Donaldson for one game, a decision he has appealed.
'It’s somewhere he should not be going'
Yankees manager Aaron Boone admitted he was “frankly upset’’ about Donaldson’s “Jackie’’ reference but was “less taken aback’’ after hearing his third baseman’s context.
Still, “it’s somewhere he should not be going,’’ and wondered why Donaldson wasn’t more aware.
Donaldson has already explained himself to teammates with Boone in his office and in one-on-one conversations.
“He’s been talking to guys, so we’ll continue to handle things as they come,’’ said Boone. “He’s been very forthright and open with anyone and everyone.’’
Donaldson wasn’t around to speak Monday, kept home with flu-like symptoms and placed on the COVID-19 injured list.
At this time, Boone doesn’t see the need for Donaldson to fully address the team, though that dynamic has changed before; Yankees players asked for a team meeting with Domingo German two years ago, following his MLB suspension for domestic abuse.
Can Donaldson keep it together?
A lot has been said about the chemistry of this Yankees team, off to a sensational 29-10 start before the White Sox swept a doubleheader Sunday at the Stadium, during Donaldson’s latest controversy.
If this was Donaldson's brand of gamesmanship, well it crossed a line. To the idea it was an inside joke, Hendriks called that take "straight delusional.''
The fire Donaldson lit this time again woke up the White Sox, a dull .500 club.
For anyone in pinstripes who wasn’t versed in how Donaldson has worn out welcomes, here was the latest the example.
Now, it’s up to Donaldson – once more – to keep that fire under control.
Pete Caldera is the Yankees beat writer for NorthJersey.com.
Email: caldera@northjersey.com Twitter: @pcaldera