Blue Jays, Donaldson Agree to Deal, MLB Contracts

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Published on February 9 2016 6:20 am
Last Updated on February 9 2016 6:20 am

The Toronto Blue Jays and star third baseman Josh Donaldson have avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a two-year contract worth nearly $29 million, according to a report Monday night by Sportsnet Canada.

Donaldson, the 2015 American League MVP, and the Blue Jays had been scheduled for an arbitration hearing on Feb. 15.

Neither side has confirmed the deal, but Donaldson took to Twitter shortly before the Sportsnet report was published Monday night.

Donaldson, 30, was acquired by the Blue Jays in a blockbuster trade with the Oakland Athletics in November 2014. He was instrumental in helping Toronto end its 21-year postseason drought.

Donaldson became the second AL MVP in franchise history. He batted .297 with a career-high 41 home runs while leading the league in RBIs (123) and runs scored (122).


D-backs, Pollock Avoid Arbitration

The Arizona Diamondbacks and outfielder A.J. Pollock have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a two-year contract.

The deal is worth $10.25 million, sources told ESPN's Buster Olney.

A Gold Glove winner in 2015, Pollock batted .315 the past season, with 20 homers and 76 RBIs. He produced a team-high 192 hits.

"It's an exciting time to be a Diamondback," Pollock told MLB.com. "I'm glad to get the business side taken care of and focus on helping this team win."

With the 28-year-old Pollock in center and perennial MVP candidate Paul Goldschmidt at first base, the Diamondbacks have two of the NL's best all-around position players.

Couple that with the offseason acquisitons of pitchers Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller, and the Diamondbacks look primed to compete with the Dodgers and Giants for the NL West title.


Tigers, Martinez Agree to Terms

The Detroit Tigers and outfielder J.D. Martinez have agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth $18.5 million pending a physical, a source confirmed to ESPN.com.

The new contract, which will pay Martinez $6.75 million in 2016 and $11.75 million in 2017, allows Martinez and the Tigers to avoid salary arbitration, which was slated to take place later this month.

When the two sides exchanged salary figures the past month, they found themselves with a significant gap to bridge, with Martinez's camp reportedly submitting an annual average value of $8 million and the team an AAV of $6 million. The deal reached Monday evening comes in with an AAV of $9.25 million.

Martinez becomes the fourth and final arbitration-eligible player to reach a deal with Detroit this offseason. The Tigers also signed Justin Wilson, Jose Iglesias and Andrew Romine.