Sometimes in fantasy baseball circles you’ll hear the phrase “he’s a better real-life player than fantasy player,” and there aren’t many who fit that description better than recently traded Brendan Donovan.
Donovan was dealt to the Seattle Mariners in a three-team trade that sent young talent and prospects to St. Louis and Tampa Bay. While he’s the headline name in the deal, fantasy managers should temper expectations. Donovan’s real-life value comes from his versatility—he can play virtually anywhere on the field—and his defense is excellent. He also adds value through savvy baserunning and consistently professional at-bats, traits that matter a lot to MLB teams but do very little for fantasy production.
From a fantasy perspective, Donovan is limited, though he remains a solid plug-and-play option. Moving to T-Mobile Park isn’t going to help his already modest power output. Expect no more than around a dozen home runs at best, with single-digit totals a real possibility. Speed isn’t part of his profile either—he’s never stolen more than five bases in a season—so he provides little help in that category.
Where Donovan can contribute is in counting stats, as he should hit in a good lineup and see regular playing time. Even there, the upside is fairly capped. His runs scored totals, typically in the mid-60s, could rise slightly in a better offense, but his RBI production has always lagged. He’s topped 50 RBI only once in his career, and expecting more than the low-to-mid 50s would be optimistic.
Batting average is where Donovan truly helps. He’s a career .282 hitter and spent much of last season flirting with the .290 mark. If you’re chasing average, he can be useful—but that’s a narrow path to fantasy relevance.
Overall, while Donovan is an important piece in real baseball, fantasy managers should view him as more of a bench option. Unless you’re desperate for batting average help, he’s not someone who needs to be rostered aggressively. And even then, players like Luis Arraez or Xavier Edwards are likely better, more targeted solutions.