Building a Blue Jays trade package for Brendan Donovan that keeps him out of Seattle

The Toronto Blue Jays have been linked to Bo Bichette and Kyle Tucker all offseason, but there hasn't appeared to be any headway towards either player signing. A significant need for the Blue Jays has been to find a bat to replace Bichette's void.

The team has the luxury of signing a player of any position other than first base (Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is locked in at first) because of the flexibility of Addison Barger and Ernie Clement. Barger can play third base or a corner outfield position, and Clement can play any infield position or left field.

If there's no traction on acquiring Bichette or Tucker, an alternative could be acquiring Brendan Donovan from the St. Louis Cardinals.

Building a Blue Jays trade package for Donovan that would keep him out of Seattle

Donovan won't fill the power void, but an Anthony Santander bounce-back could be the answer to increasing power production. Over Donovan's four-year career, he's hit 40 home runs and knocked in 202 runs. Donovan has averaged a .772 OPS, a 0.67 walk-to-strikeout ratio, and his lowest wRC+ is 115. The 28-year-old has been great at getting on base and has been relatively healthy, playing in at least 115 games in three of his four big league seasons.

What makes Donovan even more valuable is his ability to play every infield and corner outfield position. It would allow manager John Schneider to move players around freely. The issue for the Blue Jays is that, with Donovan being under team control for two more seasons, he's highly sought after.

That means the team would have to get creative in a trade package; however, the Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants seem to be the frontrunners to acquire Donovan due to the top prospects they can offer. To outbid these two teams, the Blue Jays would have to let go of MLB-ready players or near ready prospects.

The Cardinals want to get younger and seem to be targeting pitching and outfield as their priorities in the return for Donovan, and the Blue Jays could deliver high-quality players at those spots. Since Toronto looks to be behind the front-runners, they'd have to overdeliver if they believe Donovan can help them win next season. A few players that stand out who could be headlines in a trade package are:

Ricky Tiedemann - LHP, #4 Prospect

Tiedemann could be next season's Trey Yesavage. There's a load of hype around the 23-year-old after the Blue Jays added him to the 40-man roster this offseason to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. The move shows the Blue Jays' intentions to have Tiedemann make his MLB debut at some point next season. He suffered an injury in July 2024 that required the prospect to undergo Tommy John surgery.

He missed the entire 2025 season, but getting added to the 40-man roster likely implies he will be healthy for spring training ahead of 2026. This makes Tiedemann an extremely appealing candidate for the Cardinals.

Johnny King - LHP, #5 Prospect

King is only 19, but was selected in the third round of the 2024 MLB Draft. He was outstanding this past season, splitting time between the Rookie and Single-A leagues. Over 61.2 innings, he posted a 2.48 ERA, a 105:37 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and held batters to a .200 batting average off of him.

His fastball maxes out at 95-96 mph, and his curveball has deceptive break to fool hitters. He has a changeup but rarely throws the pitch which makes developing a third pitch a priority over the offseason. The promise King has shown should be enough for the Cardinals to build around him.

Yohendrick Pinango - OF, #7 Prospect

Pinango has been decent over his six-year minor-league contract, slashing .265/.337/.394, with an average OPS of .731. He has a great eye at the plate, drawing 70 walks. Pinango doesn't produce much power, only hitting 15 last season. With his average throwing arm, he'd likely be better suited in left field. The 23-year-old is a perfect developmental piece to acquire.

Joey Loperfido - Utility

Loperfido was solid in his limited MLB experience last season. He hit .333/.379/.500 with an .879 OPS and a 148 wRC+ over 104 plate appearances. Loperfido has logged innings in all three outfield positions, as well as first and second base. His issue is that he is buried behind an outfield and an infield that is deep. He still has two pre-arbitration seasons remaining, making him a perfect asset for the Cardinals to acquire.  

Addison Barger - Utility

This will be a controversial trade piece among fans. However, to jump the Mariners and Giants, he may be the player who lands Donovan. Donovan is only two years older than Barger, can play the same positions, and is also a left-handed batter. The only trade-off is that the Blue Jays are losing a player who hit 21 home runs last season.

However, Barger has struggled to be a consistent hitter throughout an entire season, whereas Donovan's strong suit is consistency. So you're trading power for more on-base capability. This trade will only make sense if the Blue Jays sign Tucker or Bichette to utilize another power source. The team can't afford to have another power void.

However, you look at the talk revolving around Donovan, the Blue Jays definitely have the pieces to look like a more appealing trade partner than the Mariners or Giants.