Brendan Donovan

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Brendan Michael Donovan

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Biographical Information[edit]

Infielder Brandon Donovan was born in Germany where his father served as an officer in the United States Army. He grew up in Alabama and went to both high school and college in the state.

He was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 7th round of the 2018 amateur draft and made it to the majors with the Cards in April of 2022. He was mainly an outfielder in college, until his senior season when he switched to the infield, playing shortstop and third base. The Cardinals made him a full-time second baseman with the Peoria Chiefs in 2019, and then had him play other positions in order to make him a utility player in the majors. In his rookie season, he played 126 games and batted .281, with 5 homers and 45 RBIs. HIs OBP was an excellent .394 and his OPS+ 124. He was the initial winner of the Gold Glove for the utility player position, an award introduced that season, as his playing time was spread between second base, third base, left field, right field, first base and DH, and he fielded well everywhere he was used. He finished third in the voting for the 2022 National League Rookie of the Year Award and was named to the 2022 Topps All-Star Rookie Team as the second baseman. He went 0 for 7 as the Cards were defeated by the Philadelphia Phillies in the Wild Card Series.

In 2023, his playing time went down, as he appeared in 95 games and batted .284 with 11 homers and 34 RBIs, for an OPS+ of 114. Once again, he did not have a fixed position, appearing all over the field. In 2024, with injuries making other outfielders unavailable, he ended up playing 105 games in left field and 53 at second base; as a measure of comparison, he had never played more than 38 games at any single position in his first two seasons. He continued to hit well, posting once again an OPS+ of 114 with a.278 average, 34 doubles, 14 homers and 73 RBIs, the last three figures being personal bests, as were his 65 runs scored. This was largely a function of increased playing time, with 153 games and 587 at-bats. He played one more season for the Cardinals in 2025, with 118 games as the team's regular second baseman. He continued to hit well, with a batting average of .287 with 10 homers and 50 RBIs. His OPS+ was 119 and he was named to play in the 2025 All-Star Game.

The infield was an area of strength for the rebuilding Cards however, and that made Donovan, who was now 29, a potential trading chip. The anticipated deal took place on February 2, 2026, when he was sent to the Seattle Mariners for a package of prospects, including two recent first-round draft choices in P Jurrangelo Cijntje and OF Tai Peete, and other good prospect in OF Colton Ledbetter, the later coming from the Tampa Bay Rays, who were the third party involved in the deal.

Notable Achievements[edit]

Records Held[edit]

  • Tied MLB record by hitting four doubles in a game, September 23, 2025

Further Reading[edit]

  • Daniel Kramer: "Mariners acquire All-Star infielder Donovan in 3-team trade", mlb.com, February 2, 2026. [1]

Related Sites[edit]

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