5 best fits for Brendan Donovan as Cardinals near end of his trade saga

It feels like any moment now, the St. Louis Cardinals could be parting ways with All-Star utility man Brendan Donovan.

This past week, I got the chance to interview Donovan on the Dealin' the Cards podcast's annual charity livestream (you can catch that conversation here or in the embedded video below), and he's well aware of the rumors floating around regarding his future. And as we talked to beat reporters like Katie Woo, Derrick Goold, and Jeff Jones, all of them seemed to confirm that as well. The overwhelming sentiment is that Donovan will be wearing a different uniform next year.

There have been so many teams linked to Donovan at this point that it really shouldn't be a surprise if any team trades for him, but today I wanted to look at the five teams that seem to be the best fits for a Donovan trade, both in terms of their need for him, as well as their ability to match the high asking price the Cardinals have for Donovan's services.

Just missed: Kansas City Royals

One of the earliest teams linked to Donovan this offseason, to me, the Royals feel like the "floor" for a Donovan deal, and if he ends up being sent to Kansas City, I'll likely be disappointed by the return.

The name from Kansas City that has been floated around the most is left-handed pitcher Noah Cameron, who had a very successful rookie year for the Royals, but his under-the-hood metrics don't look all that favorable. He has a dynamite curveball and a highly effective slider, but his fastball is mediocre at best and needs improvement if he is going to be more than a back-end of the rotation starter long term.

Yes, Cameron did post a 2.99 ERA in 24 starts this past year, which is excellent for a rookie, but his 4.18 FIP and 4.08 xERA tell me there was some smoke and mirrors involved in that stat line. Cameron did miss a lot of bats in the minor leagues, but if he's going to do that in the majors as well, his fastball needs to bump up from the low-90s. When a prospect has a deadly curveball or slider, it makes sense that they'll strike out a lot of minor leaguers who just don't see that kind of pitch very often. During his first full major league season, Cameron struck out just 114 batters in 138.1 innings of work.

The Cardinals' previous regime would have loved a guy like Cameron, but Chaim Bloom and his staff have been targeting young arms with plus fastballs and big-time stuff, and while Cameron's off-speed stuff fits the bill, I just don't see his fastball or overall swing-and-miss ability as being good enough to headline a Donovan deal.

#5 - Cleveland Guardians

The Cleveland Guardians are another American League Central team that has been linked to Donovan often this offseason, and they match up well with the Cardinals for a number of reasons.

First, on the Guardians' side of things, their offense was awful last year, and it's only because of their pitching that they were able to make an October appearance in 2025. The Guardians ranked 29th in average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage last season and were only able to score 643 runs, which ranked 28th in all of baseball.

Adding a player like Donovan to their lineup would be a huge win for the Guardians. He fits a lot of what they like in their bats — great contact skills, high on-base percentage, and a good defender — and he would be able to plug into so many different positions for them as needed. The versatility that Donovan offers is especially valuable to a smaller-market team when they don't have the resources to go spend big on holes when they pop up.

For the Cardinals, there is a natural connection with the Guardians here, as assistant general manager Rob Cerfolio spent over a decade with the Guardians before coming over to the Cardinals last offseason. If anyone knows the Guardians system, it's Cerfolio. And the Cardinals have shown over the last year a level of comfort in making deals with teams they are already familiar with.

In terms of a return for the Cardinals, the Guardians offer a variety of names that would be worth considering for St. Louis. Parker Messick is a lower-upside, MLB-ready arm that would be a disappointing headliner but would be a welcome addition as part of the deal. Braylon Doughty, whom the Guardians selected with the 36th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, is an arm with upside that I would be interested in snagging from their farm system.

Khal Stephen, Daniel Espino, Alfonsin Rosario, Andrew Walters, and a variety of other arms and bats paried together could offer a nice return for St. Louis here. If a deal is made with Cleveland, I likely wouldn't be as disappointed as I would be with the Royals' return, but it still would lack the kind of excitement I'd get with other potential returns on this list.

#4 - San Francisco Giants

Buster Posey wants to get the San Francisco Giants back to being a contender in the National League, and adding a winning player like Brendan Donovan would be a great step in that direction.

According to a recent report by Katie Woo of The Athletic, the Giants are one of the teams most aggressively pursuing Donovan in the trade market right now, so a deal between the two sides feels like one of the more likely outcomes at this point. The Giants are pretty right-handed heavy in their lineup right now, so adding Donovan to their mix would help balance out an offense that features Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman, Jung Hoo Lee, Heliot Ramos, Bryce Eldridge, and Willy Adames.

The Giants made a splash earlier this offseason by hiring University of Tennessee coach Tony Vitello to be their new manager, and Vitello feels like the kind of manager who would love to have a Donovan around. Donovan is a culture builder, a hard worker, and someone who does all of the little things right, and he's capable of being one of the best players on this Giants roster as they push the Dodgers in the National League West.

Two names have been reported as coming up in negotiations between the Giants and the Cardinals, and that is 2025 first-round pick Gavin Kilen and left-handed pitcher Carson Whisenhunt. Kilen would be an interesting infield prospect to target with his bat-to-ball skills, and Whisenhunt is MLB-ready with some nice stuff from the left side.

Personally, I'd likely prefer one of their other pitching prospects like Jacob Bresnahan or Keyner Martinez over a Whisenhunt, as both have plus stuff that can lead to mid-rotation upside long term. Bresnahan is a lefty with a plus fastball and changeup to mix with an average slider and above-average control, and while he's still pretty far from a MLB debut, he fits the Cardinals' long-term contention timeline.

Martinez is also a ways away from a debut, but his plus fastball and sweeper fit the mold of what misses bats in today's game. His fastball got a tremendous 25.5% whiff rate in 2025, and the sweeper is a major swing-and-miss tool as well. If his changeup can move into being an average pitch, there is a ton of upside here.

Other names to watch include outfielder Dakota Jordan, who has big-time power from the right side of the plate, and Bo Davidson, another powerful bat in the outfield who has a chance to stick in center field. The Giants have a lot of interesting options to offer St. Louis, so we'll see if this is whom they ultimately match up with.

#3 - Boston Red Sox

Another deal with the Boston Red Sox?!?! According to Tim Healey of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox are among the teams that have expressed interest in acquiring Donovan's services, and we all know how much these two teams have made trades in recent years.

Since the beginning of last offseason, the Cardinals and Red Sox have made three trades (Tyler O'Neill, Steven Matz, and Sonny Gray) while agreeing in principle on a fourth deal involving Nolan Arenado. The Red Sox have also expressed interest in Willson Contreras this offseason, and Arenado could be another retread conversation for them, depending on how the offseason unfolds.

Bloom is very familiar with Boston's farm system from his time running the organization, and he obviously has relationships with the staff that remain there. If the Red Sox really want Donovan, they have the prospect capital to make the Cardinals an offer they can't refuse.

There is still a lot of uncertainty in the Red Sox infield right now, and they clearly are interested in upgrading that unit, considering their interest in re-signing Alex Bregman or trading for Ketel Marte as well. Donovan would be the most cost-effective of the trio in terms of dollars, and may not cost as much prospect capital as Marte would in a trade.

Lefty Payton Tolle is likely off the table in any trades for Boston right now that don't involve bringing back a superstar, but they have plenty of other prospects worth bringing back to St. Louis. Right-handed pitcher Kyson Witherspoon was a name linked to the Cardinals in the 2025 MLB Draft and could be Major League-ready as soon as 2027. Righty Luis Perales has a 70-grade fastball and plus cutter, so he'd be a major upside play if the Cardinals brought him back in a deal. Lefty Connelly Early presents more of a low-upside, high-floor arm that I'd be less interested in.

Boston has so many names that could be of interest to the Cardinals, so if news drops that Donovan is going to Boston, that could very well mean the Cardinals got an awesome offer to part ways with their fan favorite.

#2 - New York Yankees

The New York Yankees have expressed interest in acquiring Donovan for a long time now, and they have the roster flexibility to make the move if they finally want to cash in on their pursuit of Donovan.

Jazz Chisholm Jr., whom the Yankees acquired this past summer to bolster their offense, is someone they could flip to another team this offseason to replenish their system, or they could keep him at second base and have Donovan replace Ryan McMahon at third, who disappointed for the Yankees upon being acquired at the deadline as well.

Considering how old and often injured the Yankees roster is, having a player like Donovan could fill in at five different positions on the field would be a major win for Aaron Boone. The Yankees have a potent offense, but their left-handed bats did rank in the bottom third in baseball in batting average and on-base percentage, something Donovan does really well, along with a 140 wRC+ against right-handed pitching.

If the Yankees are aggressive in their pursuit of Donovan, they have so many young pitchers that could be of interest to St. Louis. Any of their right-handed prospects like Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz, Carlos Lagrange, and Ben Hess would all be really nice headliners for a Donovan trade.

Rodriguez already has five average or above-average pitches with a plus fastball to set the tone for him and plus control of his offerings. He could very well be in the majors this year. Lagrange has a plus fastball and slider that get a ton of swing and miss, and he could see big league action as soon as 2027, possibly even 2026. Hess was the Yankees' first-round pick in 2024 and uses his plus slider alongside his average to above-average fastball, curveball, changeup, and control to get outs. His fastball has shown the ability to hit the high 90s, so if he can consistently live in the middle or upper 90s, he could be even better than he projects to be right now.

Considering the quantity of exciting young arms the Yankees have, it really wouldn't surprise me to see them turn one or two of them into Donovan. I didn't even mention other pitching prospects they have, like Bryce Cunningham or Chase Hampton, or the fact that they have Cam Schlittler, Will Warren, and Luis Gil in their rotation right now.

The Yankees really need to make a splash now if they want to make the most of Aaron Judge's prime. He'll turn 34 in 2026, so the clock is ticking to capture the Yankees' 27th World Series title with Judge in a Yankees uniform.

#1 - Seattle Mariners

While the Yankees are a close second in terms of fit for me, the Seattle Mariners continue to be the team that makes the most sense for a Brendan Donovan trade, and if a deal goes down, both parties could walk away very happy with the results.

The Mariners are coming off a dream season, coming so close to their first-ever World Series appearance behind their young core and an all-time great season from catcher Cal Raleigh. But as we all know, championship windows can shrink fast, so taking advantage of the window they have right now is critical.

For years, the Mariners' offense seemed to hold them back time and time again, but behind Raleigh's 60-home run campaign, Julio Rodriguez's continued stardom, and recent acquisitions of Randy Arozarena, Josh Naylor, and Jorge Polanco, Seattle's offense became a major strength to go alongside their excellent rotation and lockdown bullpen.

Polanco just left in free agency, and while the rest of their offense remains in place, it's not really fair of them to expect Raleigh to put up another all-time great season or for prospects to replace the 130 wRC+ production they got from Polanco. Adding a very good bat like Donovan would be huge for this roster's chances of winning the World Series in 2026.

Seattle boasts one of the best farm systems in baseball, and that, paired with young pitching already at the Major League level, gives them all the tools to make a Donovan trade while remaining in a position of strength in every area. 2025 third-overall pick Kade Anderson, righty Ryan Sloan, and switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje headline their pitching prospects currently, and an arm like Bryce Miller in their big league rotation could also be of interest to St. Louis.

Anderson is off the table in trade talks, and it's hard to see Seattle parting with Sloan either. Sloan's plus fastball, slider, and changeup have made him a dream play for Cardinals fans, but my guess is he won't be someone they could get back in a deal.

Cijntje is a top-100 prospect who has already been linked to the Cardinals by Katie Woo, and while he presents a ton of intrigue as a switch-pitcher, he is much better from the right side. Outfielder Lazaro Montes, another top 100 prospect, has also been linked to the Cardinals due to his big-time power that grades out as a 70 currently. Infielder Michael Arroyo and outfielder Tai Peete also present intriguing options for St. Louis.

If the Cardinals are going to trade Brendan Donovan, the Seattle Mariners seem to present them with the best possible return here, and they can make that kind of deal while keeping their farm system in a strong place and being primed to compete for a World Series.

Odds are Donovan is playing for a different team in 2026, so we'll wait and see which team meets the Cardinals' asking price.