The New York Yankees have a solid crop of young infielders who are competing for the starting shortstop job on the team’s Opening Day roster.
Top prospect Anthony Volpe is leading the way, with players such as Oswald Peraza and Isiah Kiner-Falefa also in the mix.
However, the third base position is one that is full of question marks as well.
Josh Donaldson, who was acquired by the Yankees from the Minnesota Twins before the 2022 season, is coming off of a down year, which made him not very popular among Yankees fans.
Last season, the 37-year-old hit just .222 with 15 home runs and 62 RBI.
But Donaldson is bound and determined to put 2022 in the past as he shifts his focus to the 2023 season, and stated that if he felt like he didn’t have anything left to offer, he would not have reported to camp, according to Jon Heyman.
“If I felt like I didn’t have anything left to offer the game, I wouldn’t have reported to camp,” Josh Donaldson tells the Posthttps://t.co/smb5dFLpzE
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 13, 2023
This is a big year for Donaldson.
He is in the final year of the four-year contract he signed with the Twins prior to the 2020 season.
He hit just .247 in 2021 before the trade and has not hit above .250 since 2019 when he was with the Atlanta Braves.
Again, the Yankees have plenty of young infielders in the system, and if Donaldson does not pan out, then somebody such as Peraza or Kiner-Falefa could take over at third base if they do not win the starting shortstop job.
At the age of 37, Donaldson may be down to his last chance.
However, he clearly believes that there is more left in the tank and is on a mission to prove himself in 2023.
NEXT:
Yankees Insider Believes Anthony Volpe Is Ready
