Josh Donaldson likes a lot about being a Minnesota Twin: Target Field, the nap room inside Target Field, the $92 million contract the Twins gave him, and the opportunity to square of up pitching in the American League Central Division.
“For some reason this stadium sets up well for me,” said Donaldson during his introductory press conference Wednesday. “Maybe it’s the background. I don’t know, I’ve taken a personal liking to it. I’m looking forward to putting up big numbers here.”
In 22 career games at Target Field, Donaldson is a .378 hitter with 10 home runs and 1.283 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentages).
Ironically, “The Bringer of Rain” was introduced by the Twins as rain was falling in Minneapolis in the dead of winter. Destiny? Perhaps. But Minnesota is the place Donaldson told his agent he wanted to be once MLB free agency opened.
“There was a lot of things that were already leaning me towards being here,” he said.
Donaldson, the 2019 National League Comeback Player of the Year and 2015 American League MVP, fell even further in love with the idea of playing for the Twins after a long call with Twins front office members and manager Rocco Baldelli.
“We spoke for about 2 1/2 hours. There wasn’t much of a quiet moment between any of us,” said Donaldson, who after that called turned to his girlfriend and said, “Man, I really enjoyed that conversation.”
“It just went really well. I always thought that this was going to be an opportunity for me to come here. There’s a lot of positives for me and why I wanted to do that,” he added.
Entering the first year of a four-year, $92 million contract, Donaldson indicated that he hopes he can make the Twins his home even beyond his playing days.
“This could possibly be my final contract. I want to leave an imprint on this organization for whenever I am finished playing,” he said.
Added Twins boss Derek Falvey: “This guy is a winning baseball player through and through. We feel fortunate to have him.”
Donaldson and Twins position players report to Fort Myers, Florida for spring training Feb. 16. Pitchers and catchers report Feb. 11.
