3 years agoThird baseman Josh Donaldson was acquired by the New York Yankees in a trade with the Minnesota Twins shortly after the league's lockout ended. The former AL MVP was disappointing for fantasy managers in each of his two seasons with the Twins. Last year, over 135 games, he slashed .247/.352/.475 with 26 home runs, 72 RBI and 73 runs. The year before, injuries held him to just 28 games, during which he slashed .222/.373/.469 with six home runs. Donaldson turned 36 years old this past December, and while that's an age where we often see declining stats, Donaldson's peripheral stats tell a different story. Donaldson was in elite company with his hard contact metrics last year. His 94.1 mph average exit velocity was fourth in the majors behind only Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Additionally, he ranked in the 95th percentile in both hard-hit rate (52.7%) and barrel rate (17.4%). All three of these advanced power metrics were higher for Donaldson last year than they were in 2019, when he hit 37 home runs and posted a .900 OPS with the Atlanta Braves. The veteran is a strong bounce-back candidate in 2022 and he's a steal in drafts with an ADP of nearly 200. The move to New York should benefit him as he'll have a more hitter-friendly park and more support in the lineup. If he can play close to a full season, he's a safe bet for around 30 home runs and he has 35-plus homer upside.--Andrew Ericksen - RotoBaller