On Josh Donaldson’s Retirement: His 10 Best Blue Jay Moments

This past week, Josh Donaldson announced that he would be retiring from major league baseball. Being a Toronto native, I’m selfishly admitting that the highlights of Donaldson’s career were with the Toronto Blue Jays. Here is my list of Donaldson’s top 10 moments as a Blue Jays player.

#10 – Helping Out for a Cause – Marco Estrada’s Bid for a “Perfect Game”

Moment #10 happened at none other than the grotesque Tropicana Field. It was the Blue Jays vs. Tampa Bay Rays, on June 24, 2015. Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada was on the mound in the bottom of the 8th inning in a neck-to-neck game. In fact, no Rays’ player had reached base.

What was a foul ball that might have landed a few rows into the seats turned into a spectacular catch by Donaldson. The result was a much-needed out in Estrada’s bid for a perfect game. Sadly, Estrada didn’t get his perfect game. However, he did achieve a career highlight that day.

#9 – Big Tag

In thinking about the previous moment against the Rays, highlight #9 is a moment involving these same two clubs. It happened on September 27, 2015. In the top of the 8th inning, a Rays runner was on third. A “chopper” from the bat of Rays Evan Longoria was perfectly snatched by Donaldson, who made an incredible tag play as Rays Mikie Mahtook tried to get an advanced lead to score. Donaldson beat him back to third to prevent a run in a very competitive ball game.

#8 – Donaldson Stops by MLB Network to Share his MVP-Worthy Batting Approach

Featured on the MLB Network, in the video below, Donaldson chats with former MLB slugger Mark DeRosa. The conversation became a riveting insight for fans from MLB’s ‘top all-around player’ in the year following his 2015 MVP award.

#7 – Donaldson’s Homerun ‘Trifecta’ Game

On August 28, 2016, (the season following his MVP season), the Blue Jays faced the Minnesota Twins. In this game, Donaldson hit three big home runs to sweep the Twins.