The Toronto Blue Jays have been so active in the free agent market that once their Bo Bichette and Kyle Tucker chase failed, they reportedly switched their interests to Cody Bellinger. However, if Jays Digest’s Nick Gosse is to be believed, they have another name in target, which could be, in fact, a better find.

“Brendan Donovan will make a lot of sense for the Blue Jays,” Gosse explained how Brendan Donovan (1-year, $5.8 million) of the St. Louis Cardinals could fit in the Blue Jays roster. “His career WRC plus against right-handed pitchers is 130. He’s not going to match Bo’s production against lefties, but they have Ernie Clement to match against them. This is a guy who absolutely crushes righties. He’s a solid defender at times, but this would make so much sense for the Jays.

“It almost screams like Ross Atkins trade to me.”

The Blue Jays might choose Brendan Donovan over Cody Bellinger due to the latter’s contractual expectations. Reportedly, Bellinger is asking for a seven-year deal with $30 million per year. But Mitch Bannon of The Athletic has reported that the Blue Jays haven’t really shown any interest in Belli throughout the offseason and are unlikely to suddenly become interested and beat the Yankees’ offer.

In fact, the Blue Jays might be getting a versatile defender at a much lower price in Brendan Donovan.

Just like Bellinger, Donovan can also play multiple positions: the outfield corners (left field and right field) as well as at shortstop. However, second base is where he performs best as a defender.

His leaping catch at second base helped him score an out against Fernando Tatis Jr. in July against the New York Mets last season. He recorded a .775 OPS as a defender. Plus, Bellinger is already in his 30’s. He might not be able to replicate his pre-injury career (2019). On the other hand, Donovan is 29 and might be able to provide the kind of performance that the Blue Jays are looking for.

Batting-wise, Donovan can handle right-hand pitchers with his left-handed contact hitting, despite not being an offensive player like Bo Bichette. However, like Bichette, Donovan is also a contact hitter and can maintain low strikeout rates during games.

His contact hitting power was evident in his clutch hitting to achieve a go-ahead double against the Houston Astros in August. Statmuse reports he achieved 8 homers and 37 RBIs in 346 plate appearances against right-handed pitchers last season. Moreover, the team would also get a reliable batter who has a very low strikeout rate (92 K%) as well as someone who rarely swings and misses during a game (95 Whif %).

The Blue Jays might decide to play Brendan Donovan at second base or left field in the upcoming season, if they sign him. This might give some time off to Ernie Clement, as he sometimes struggles offensively against right-handed pitchers. But he has been incredible against lefties, hitting .400 in June. Altogether, in 2025, he made 186 plate appearances against left-handed pitching, hitting .328.

So, if Donovan comes to the team, Toronto can use Addison Barger in right field, Anthony Santander at left field, Kazuma Okamoto at third base, and Daulton Varsho at center.

However, they need to make a good offer to the Cardinals to approve the trade. The team has two years of arbitration control remaining over Donovan. And so, they don’t necessarily have to move him now; they could wait until the trade deadline or even next offseason if the offers just aren’t up to par over the next four months.

Interestingly, the Blue Jays had some discussions with the Cardinals about Donovan after the 2022-23 offseason, when Donovan was just coming off his third-place finish in NL Rookie of the Year voting. While they couldn’t bring him home then, with their run last season, they may have become a potential place for the young blood to land.

Now that the Blue Jays are reportedly looking to add Brendan Donovan to the team through a trade, they might have to let go of some prospects.

Which prospects can the Blue Jays trade for Brendan Donovan?

While getting Brendan Donovan to the team, the Toronto Blue Jays might have to part with two of their prospects to the St. Louis Cardinals: pitcher Johnny King and outfielder RJ Schrek. Since the Cardinals are going through a rebuilding with younger players, this trade might be useful for the team.

Johnny King was drafted by the Blue Jays in the third round of the MLB draft in 2024. As their third-ranked prospect, King boasts a fastball that can reach between 95 and 96 mph and a secondary pitch in the form of a curveball, which can be around 78 mph to 81 mph and turn out to be a serious threat for his opponents.

That being said, he needs to develop a third pitch. Last season saw the youngster achieve 1-3 alongside a 3.33 ERA in 10 starts over 11 games. If he gets traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, he might become a part of the starting rotation alongside pitchers like Mathew Liberatore, Dustin May, and others, making his debut in the majors.

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Meanwhile, the Blue Jays received RJ Schrek through a trade with the Seattle Mariners in exchange for Justin Turner in 2024. Since then, he has shown impressive plate discipline and hitting skills, especially against right-handed pitching. Getting traded to the St. Louis Cardinals might make him a part of the outfield alongside Nathan Church, Joshua Baez, Lars Nootbaar, and others.

All things considered, only time will reveal whether the Blue Jays will bring in Brendan Donovan through trade or stick to their earlier rumors of signing Cody Bellinger.