Minnesota Twins: 3 things Josh Donaldson brings to the Twins

The Minnesota Twins landed their big free agent, but what does “The Bringer of Rain” bring to a team that won 101 games last season?

The Minnesota Twins offseason appeared to be a repeat of a movie that Twins fans had seen before after striking out on adding an impact pitcher. However, the Twins continued to find ways to improve the team through free agency and while it wasn’t another arm to put on the mound, they came away with a big victory, reportedly agreeing with Josh Donaldson on a four-year deal.

Known as “The Bringer of Rain,” Donaldson’s offensive ability is going to be what most fans are talking about, but he still is capable of bringing much more. As a 34-year-old that just played a full season in the National League, Donaldson is still able to man the hot corner at an elite level and by shifting Miguel Sano over to first base, the Twins got a whole lot better with this signing.

The Twins still need to make a major move before we plan a parade route on Nicollet Mall, but Donaldson’s arrival is a step in the right direction. This article will take a look at what Donaldson can provide and how he can help the Twins get over the hump in 2020.

Donaldson should help the Twins infield defensively

While everyone knows about Donaldson’s abilities at the plate, the bigger draw for the Twins might have been his defensive ability at the hot corner. The Twins were one of the defensive infields in all of baseball last year and with Miguel Sano committing 22 errors in just 91 games at third base, Minnesota knew that an upgrade needed to be made.

Donaldson was one of the games elite defenders at third base last season, finishing third in Baseball Savant’s outs above average metric with his eight OAA finishing behind Colorado’s Nolan Arenado (17) and Oakland’s Matt Chapman (14). What might benefit the Twins is his range, which helped record five outs above average in front of him and three toward shortstop.

Getting to more balls should help out Jorge Polanco, who owned the worst OAA (-16) by an infielder last season along with Toronto’s Vladamir Guerrero Jr. Meanwhile, Sano ranked 29th among third basemen (-3) in OAA, meaning a move over to first base could be a productive one after signing a three-year deal earlier this week.

In most measurables, the addition of Donaldson should create a ripple effect in the infield and while they are hoping that Sano’s move to first base goes smoother than an attempt to move him to right field in 2016, this should save Twins pitchers from having to get unnecessary outs moving forward.

Donaldson brings even more swagger to Minnesota

Probably the best thing that Donaldson brings is an extension of the attitude the Twins took on during the 2019 season. For the longest time, the Twins were known for the “Twins Way,” where they would do the right thing, scratch and claw and show up to work politely and whatever happened on the diamond just kind of happened.

The Twins took care of that by blasting 307 home runs and with that came a certain kind of swagger that had been missing since Torii Hunter and Doug Mientkiewicz were wearing Twins uniforms. Of course, those two were on the 2002 team that responded from the threat of contraction with an appearance in the ALCS.

Donaldson should have no problem instilling a swagger within the Twins and with this MLB Network interview posted by Parker Hageman, it’s clear that he’s not coming to Minnesota to go the opposite way (or hit ground balls).

As if his bat wasn’t a major clue, Donaldson should have no trouble fitting in with the Bomba Squad and if he can provide a steady presence at third base over the next couple years, it should be an easy task to live up to his big contract.