Josh Donaldson Q&A: Views Hitting as a Chess Match

[THANOS]

I didn't really see a suitable thread to put this in, but it was a fun read and pretty interesting.

 

Here is Part 1 of his Interview (will update with Part 2 when it is available)

 

DUNEDIN, Fla. – Josh Donaldson’s first spring training with the Toronto Blue Jays was spent feeling his way around a new team and a new environment. His just completed second camp was much different, and not only because the all-star third baseman helped lead his team an American League East title while also winning the AL MVP award.

 

Donaldson sat down with sportsnet.ca just before camp broke to discuss the 2016 season, evolving as a player, competitive windows and a whole lot more. Here’s part 1 of the interview…

 

What’s different for you as you prepare to open this season in comparison to last year?

 

“It’s a huge change, honestly. I knew a few guys in the clubhouse but there weren’t many guys I knew or played with, and we didn’t play against the Blue Jays a lot in Oakland. So I was trying to come in last year, be pretty open with who I am, but at the same time really get to know everybody that’s here, the staff, the players and see where everything was. I didn’t know if our team was good, or if it was bad. I knew we had some good hitters.”

 

People outside the clubhouse might not understand why the bond you developed matters, although this team always says how important the comfort you developed with another is. How does that bond and camaraderie translate onto the field?

 

“When you understand your teammates, and your teammates understand their roles instead of not really knowing and just going out there and playing – you can have the best team on paper, but if everybody doesn’t know what’s expected of them, then they don’t really know what they’re supposed to do.

 

“Last year, the casual fan doesn’t get to see it because they’re not with us every day, our team at the beginning of the season, to two weeks in to when we had everybody that was going to be on our team after the trades, it was a totally different feel, a totally different vibe in the clubhouse. What those trades did, not only did they bring in guys that are great people that are winners, but they brought in guys that were going to solidify roles for everybody. And that’s what’s important, when people understand what’s expected of them, then it takes pressure off them to feel like they have to perform in other areas.”

 

Over the course of your MVP campaign, how did you evolve as a player?

 

“There were a few things that factored into it. Being able to play the majority of my games in Toronto helped, versus playing in Oakland, which is one of the worst hitters’ parks in the game. Having the freedom to know that if I square a ball up, it’s probably going to be a homer or at least an extra-base hit allowed me some freedom mentally, and baseball is a very big mental game, as we all know.

 

“Two, because of the guys who were surrounding me, (Jose) Bautista, Edwin (Encarnacion), pitchers were more prone to throw me strikes. From how spring training has gone, I might end up walking 200 times this year, but we’ll see. I don’t know how long they’re going to want to walk me to get to those guys. I joke about it, but as far as spring went, I don’t feel like I need to take a bat up there half the time, I’m being walked 50 per cent of the time.”

 

How do you handle that challenge during the season?

 

“It is a challenge because I want to swing. But the past three seasons I’ve averaged 70-plus walks a year, and so I’ve worked at-bats and I’ve always said I don’t go up there looking for walks, the reason I walk is because guys end up not wanting to throw me strikes, or they get a little tentative. From what I’ve judged in the spring, guys don’t want to throw me strikes. But when it starts meaning something and counting, we’ll see how it goes.”

 

Do you believe protection in a batting lineup comes more from who’s hitting behind you, or having guys get on base in front of you?

 

“Having guys get on base helps. There were several times throughout the course of last year where, if I was in Oakland I’d know for sure I’d see four fingers out, walk, and they came at me because now I have Bautista behind me. I was the fourth MVP award winner to not be intentionally walked the entire season. That says a lot for the guy behind me, it wasn’t because I was having a bad year, it was because they were scared to death of that guy behind me.”

 

Right now you’re expecting not to see a lot of strikes based on spring training, so you have a plan going into the season. What’s your process of adjustment like?

“The game of baseball is filled with adjustments you have to make all throughout the season. Last year I had to make an adjustment early on because in Oakland it was more like how guys are pitching me this spring – 2-1 sliders, 2-1 changeups, 3-2 breaking ball.

 

“Last year, especially early on, I was more thinking 3-2 I’m going to get a breaking ball, and they were being more aggressive with the heater. It took me time to get adjusted to guys being aggressive with me. When I started hitting well, it started changing back. It’s going to happen this season where pitchers are going to adjust to me, and I’m going to have to adjust to their plan, and they’re going to adjust to my plan. It’s a chess match.”

 

source: http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/mlb/josh-donaldson-qa-hitting-chess-match-blue-jays-mvp/

 

Thoughts?

 

Update:

 

Here’s part 2…

 

In Oakland, you dealt with constant roster turnover for business reasons. What’s your approach to the team’s big picture given the focus on 2016 with 10 pending free agents, given that you’re under club control through 2018?

 

“Sometimes you do (look at the big picture), but our job as players is not to worry about next year, our job as players is to worry about this year, and go out there and win. That’s just the fact of the matter. We want to win, and we want to win now. It’s not, hey, we hope we do it this year. No. We’re going to win now.

 

“When it’s next year, we’ll worry about that, because this is the simple fact of baseball and the major-league business: they’re always trying to replace you as a player, they’re always trying to get cheaper, and at the end of the day, you have to go out there and perform. Part of performing is going out there and winning games.”

 

Can the possibility of a large number of players leaving after the season make it easier or more difficult to perform?

 

“We have guys in the clubhouse who are going to be released or sent down. I tell everybody, ‘Hey, you’ve got to stay focused, and you’ve got to do what’s best for yourself.’ And that would be the same advice that I would offer somebody that might not be here after next year, because this game is a business.

 

“At the same time, when you’re in this clubhouse, you’re going to be a part of it, whether you want to or not. Being a part of a clubhouse is making sure your mind, energy and attention is focused on winning and not anything else because winning is the most important thing. It’s not me putting up another MVP, it’s not any of that, it’s going out there and winning division titles that it’s all about.”

 

I’d say that across work environments, there’s the possibility of distractions caused by the inherent tension between individual goals and an organization’s goals, causing people to forget collective success is good for everyone. Can that be difficult to learn?

 

“Distractions for me are things that you allow to happen. If you don’t allow distractions to happen, there are no distractions. I know I’m defining that with the same word, but you allow things to distract you. If you don’t allow those things to happen, that’s not a problem.”

 

How did you learn to compartmentalize things?

 

“I’ve had to deal with that from a very young age to now. I’ve had to make sure to set my goals to what I wanted out of life, to at the end of the day what was really important. That’s what you have to focus on. I came from a small town, like 13,000 people. This is not a sob story, I had people all the time tell me, ‘Hey, you’re not big enough to do this, you’re not smart enough to do this, you’re not athletic enough to get scholarships.’

 

“But I had my mom on my life, I had family members in my life, and I had coaches in my life that believed in me. They’d say, ‘Hey, if you do this, if you work harder than other people, at the end of the day, you’re going to get what you want. And if you don’t, that’s OK, too, because at least you can look yourself in the mirror and say you gave it everything you had. Maybe that’s not right for you, maybe it’s something else.’ I feel if I wasn’t a baseball player, I won’t say what I would be because I don’t know, I feel I would be successful at it because it’s a mindset, it’s a focus.”

 

Given all the obstacles you’ve overcome, did you allow yourself in the off-season to really savour the fact that you were named American League MVP?

 

“There were a few moments, there were a few moments. I got to have a lot of fun this off-season as far as being able to partake in certain things, playing at Pebble Beach, playing a golf round with Jason Dufner, I had Justin Timberlake there and Alfonso Ribeiro who played Carlton on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, I’m like, ‘This is legit.’ And I’m talking to my boy and it’s like, these guys are excited that I’m here, as well. I don’t look at it that way – I’m excited to meet them.

 

“There were several celebrities who sought after me and that was different. These guys were coming up to me and telling me my stats and I was like, ‘You were paying attention? I wouldn’t think such and such would be paying attention to what Toronto was doing.’”

 

So having success in Toronto was different than having success in Oakland?

 

“In some ways, but I’m not going to talk bad about Oakland, because they gave me a great opportunity. Because I finished fourth and eighth (in MVP voting), nobody remembers who comes in second. When you win an award people remember that and people are excited about that. I don’t know what it would have been like if I’d won one in Oakland versus winning one in Toronto.

 

“But the fact is Toronto, it’s not just Toronto, it’s really Canada, and you saw that in the all-star vote. At the same time, I went out and won an award and we had some pretty stellar playoff games, as well. People remember that kind of stuff.”

How would you describe your emotions from Game 5 of the American League Division Series against the Texas Rangers?

 

“Crazy, just how everything unfolded, how many ups and downs and everything, that was really a grind of a series, one of the most grueling series I’ve ever been a part of. How that seventh inning unfolded – you see movies and books about that kind of thing. I wish we could have had a heartrate monitor to check my heartrate because when they play happened with Russell (Martin), it went through the roof because of anger, you don’t want to lose a game that way, especially with how that series went. They made the three errors and I ended up having a jam shot, it ended up a fielder’s choice, that ended up tying the game, but I was mad about that because I got jammed when we tied the game up, that was important.

 

“Then when Bats ended up coming through with the homer, it was epic, just one of those epic series and is something you won’t forget. At the same time, we didn’t get to accomplish what we wanted to accomplish and that’s winning the World Series. We feel like we have the capability to do that this year and it’s been a big focus and our first goal is to win the division again. This is where it starts.”

 

Did you have some questions about the 2016 team that were answered by what you saw in camp?

 

“I saw what they were doing in the off-season and it’s not even close with the amount of depth we have on the starting pitching side and in the bullpen side (compared to last spring), not just here but also with some guys that will go to triple-A and give us insurance policies over the course of the year. We’re going to need guys, there are going to be injuries, you saw that last season. I felt like last season, we were trying to piece five men together to go out there and start, and then piece a bullpen together. We had two 20-year-olds, one of them pans out, one of them gets traded. Jeff Francis, who retired, he was giving us everything he had.

 

“Now you look at the bullpen, Gavin Floyd looks great, you’ve got Jesse Chavez who can be a swingman, I love him as a starter, he can be a guy who starts at some point. There aren’t as many question marks, I feel like, and that’s good. Now we have Tulo (Troy Tulowitzki) for an entire season, I’m excited to see what he’s going to do for a full year, and I believe his best years are still in front of him.”

You touched on a few things there, but what are some things about this team that most lead you to have confidence in its chances this year?

 

“Staying healthy is going to be the biggest factor, and that’s with any team. What separates our team a little bit from other teams is we have bona-fide, year-in and year-out superstar-type players – Edwin, Bau, Tulo, Martin, myself I believe. (Marcus) Stroman could be that guy. He’s going to have to do it for a full season, we haven’t seen that yet, I don’t doubt him for one second, he can be that guy, but he’s got to prove to people that he can. He knows that and he wants to be that. These are really good players in here, talented guys, health is going to be the biggest issue. If we can stay healthy, we feel like we have the team to beat.”

Edited April 1, 2016 by THANOS

[SAAviour]

My thoughts are, Donaldson, Bautista, EE, Tulo has to be historically 4 of the best hitters in a row, and I can't wait til Sunday. Merry Christmas fellow bluejays fans...opening day is almost here!

[RealAccountant]

TL/dr

[KingKat]

I didn't know the bit about Donaldson not getting a single intentional walk. Interesting bit of trivia.

[RealAccountant]

My thoughts are, Donaldson, Bautista, EE, Tulo has to be historically 4 of the best hitters in a row, and I can't wait til Sunday. Merry Christmas fellow bluejays fans...opening day is almost here!

 

Yankees of the decade back had some good lineups. Mariners had Buhner Edgar Martinez Griffey and Arod

[Angrioter]

Ragnar is good, and smart.

Brett Lawrie lol

[Boxcar]

I didn't know the bit about Donaldson not getting a single intentional walk. Interesting bit of trivia.

 

Actually pretty damn crazy. Bautista is a beast.

[Spanky99]

I didn't know the bit about Donaldson not getting a single intentional walk. Interesting bit of trivia.

 

The first time I heard that, was at the MLB awards, he mentioned it in an interview after his speech, played up to having Bats and Eddie hitting after him. Pretty remarkable.

[HERPDERP]

I dunno about his numbers being s***** in ST being that people are afraid of going after him. It's ST, and for a good portion of ST he didn't have any decent protection to begin with. It'll be interesting to see how it'll work in the season

[Spanky99]

Hnnngghhh...

[BigCecil]

Good read. My thoughts are that if Tulo can get back to close to the 170 wRC+ he hit in 2014 and the others stay healthy, we are in for a fun year. I didn't know he didn't have one intentional walk all season. Says a lot about Jose on deck. I can't wait until Sunday.

[LGBJ29]

I dunno about his numbers being s***** in ST being that people are afraid of going after him. It's ST, and for a good portion of ST he didn't have any decent protection to begin with. It'll be interesting to see how it'll work in the season

 

His numbers really aren't that s*****. His power numbers aren't there, but .343/.452 is pretty damn good

[GD]

I dunno about his numbers being s***** in ST being that people are afraid of going after him. It's ST, and for a good portion of ST he didn't have any decent protection to begin with. It'll be interesting to see how it'll work in the season

 

lol

[Inklink]

What a friggin beast.

 

Thank you AA.

[Stangstag]

Good read. My thoughts are that if Tulo can get back to close to the 170 wRC+ he hit in 2014 and the others stay healthy, we are in for a fun year. I didn't know he didn't have one intentional walk all season. Says a lot about Jose on deck. I can't wait until Sunday.

 

If Tulo can put up a 125wRC+ i'd be ecstatic. Also hoping he stays on the field for at least 120 games

[THANOS]

Updated with Part 2 in the OP.