Josh Donaldson’s agent refutes report about contract offer from Blue Jays

UPDATE: Josh Donaldson’s agent, Dan Lozano, disputed Jon Heyman’s report that the Toronto Blue Jays offered the third baseman a contract before the season. No years or dollars were ever discussed between the two parties.

Josh Donaldson’s departure from the Toronto Blue Jays continues to get more and more interesting by the day.

Prior to the start of the 2018 MLB season, Toronto had offered Donaldson an extension to stay in Toronto, according to Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports.

This deal reportedly would have offered the third baseman more than the 3 year, $75-million contract Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jake Arrieta signed this off-season. Which, given how the year has played out for Donaldson, is potentially much more than what he should expect to see on the table this winter.

But the story doesn’t just stop there, it actually takes a pretty interesting plot twist.

Apparently, it was well known by executives around Major League Baseball that the Bringer of Rain didn’t want to bring his rain anywhere. He was very content with staying in Toronto, despite rumblings earlier in the year that he wanted to be moved to a contender.

Heyman says that when word of Donaldson’s reluctance to move spread around MLB, teams became less inclined to acquire his services. This starts to explain why the Jays fetched so little in return for the services of a three-time All-Star.

It’s more likely however that despite Donaldson not wanting a change of scenery at the deadline, it was probably his absence from the lineup and lack of playing time this season that scared teams off more than anything. Getting a player who is not contractually obligated to return next season – and may not be at full health at any time this season – doesn’t sound like the type of player I would want to go all-in for.

To be fair, I would be less motivated to move elsewhere too if I knew that sticking around Toronto for another year would get me a qualifying offer of $18 million from the team. Donaldson, who has missed the majority of this season due to a pair of calf injuries and a shoulder ailment, will most likely not be fetching that kind of money on the open market.

The conflict of reports between Heyman and Donaldson’s agent is a storyline to follow. This would not be the first time the baseball insider misinformed people about the former Toronto Blue Jay. Earlier this year, Heyman reported that Donaldson was seeking a ‘monster payday’ while citing multiple of the MLB star’s friends.

More Blue Jays coverage on Yahoo Canada Sports: