Josh Donaldson has to be feeling rather good about his decision to bet on himself last season. After a 2018 that was riddled with injuries -- which limited him to 52 games with Toronto and Cleveland, though he still put up a 119 OPS+ -- he “settled” for a one-year deal with Atlanta for $23 million. He ended up having a vintage Bringer of Rain season, and now he’s set to cash in as the most desirable player left on the market, a third baseman looking at several teams who desperately need one. There won’t be any one-year deals this time.

But who’s going to get him? As we did with Stephen Strasburg (got that one right), Anthony Rendon (wrong), Gerrit Cole (wrong, but just barely) and Mookie Betts (not traded yet!), we try to figure out where he’ll end up with some Josh Donaldson power rankings. These rankings are a result of intuition, public reporting, common sense and some good old-fashioned guesswork. This is our best bet.

• Latest Donaldson rumors

1. Atlanta Braves

Clearly, this is the path of least resistance. Donaldson just had a terrific year there and by all accounts would love to continue playing in Atlanta, and the Braves are trying to win the World Series and will definitely have a better chance to do so if Donaldson is on their team. The question is: How high are the Braves willing to go? Donaldson’s reported asking price of four years, $110 million is quite a hike from what the Braves paid him for one year, and it would immediately make him the highest-paid player on the (already very talented) roster. But that’s largely because players like Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies and Freddie Freeman signed club-friendly long-term extensions well before reaching free agency, and there’s a good argument to be made that the Braves could very well pass the savings on those salaries to Donaldson. The Braves are clearly trying to wait out Donaldson. The question may be one of who blinks first.

2. Washington Nationals

Donaldson is an obvious fit for Washington, which just lost one of the two or three third basemen in baseball (Anthony Rendon) who have been better than him the last few years. The Nationals have the hole at third, and, theoretically speaking, they should have the cash, and they’d have the added advantage of taking away a star player from a team that finished ahead of them last year. But one can’t help but notice that the Nats, uh, keep signing infielders who are not Josh Donaldson.

In the last week, they’ve signed Asdrúbal Cabrera, Starlin Castro and Eric Thames to an infield that already had Howie Kendrick, Trea Turner, Wilmer Difo and Carter Kieboom. The Nationals say they could still make an offer to Donaldson (or Ryan Zimmerman, for that matter), but it might push them over the luxury tax threshold, though only for the first time. Also, they just won the World Series. The Nationals are not acting like a team desperate to sign Donaldson … but then again, neither are the Braves, and yet someone eventually is going to sign him.

3. Minnesota Twins

Speaking of teams that have a clear fit for Donaldson but seem to have backed off recently, the Twins reportedly are “bracing for an announcement” that Donaldson isn’t all that interested in signing with them. According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, “sources with knowledge of the negotiations say Donaldson has not appeared interested in signing with Minnesota, and the team has begun investigating other options.” That would be a shame, because he’s a perfect fit for Minnesota. He’d push Miguel Sanó to first base, where he probably should be playing anyway, and give the Twins one more terrifying bat in the middle of that lineup. If the Braves and Nationals don’t step up, the Twins could maybe sneak back in there. The American League Central may have been relatively easy to win last year, but that is unlikely to remain the case moving forward with the frisky – and aggressive – White Sox on the horizon.

4. Texas Rangers

The Rangers were all-in on Anthony Rendon, and it wasn’t entirely because he was from Texas. They’ve had a huge hole at third base since Adrián Beltré left – their current starter is potentially Nick Solak? – and they have a new stadium that would look great with a new star to open it. Not to mention how terrific Donaldson would look batting after Joey Gallo in that lineup. But the Rangers claimed to be out on Donaldson a month ago, and it doesn’t look like his price has gone down since then. Still, it’s an ideal fit if they want to get back in.

5. Los Angeles Dodgers

We’re probably pushing it here, but the Dodgers, like the Rangers, were very much into Anthony Rendon. So it stands to reason that they’d be up for Donaldson, too. The team needs a right-handed bat in the middle of that lineup, and Justin Turner – whose contract is up after this season – has said he’s willing to play some first base to accommodate a big acquisition. Maybe the Dodgers are waiting to see if Mookie Betts or Kris Bryant becomes available, but Donaldson, who wouldn’t require the near-decade-long contract that Rendon did, could fit more in the Dodgers’ preferred contract window. But the whispers have been quiet on this one.

And just for kicks, here are four other teams that should probably be in on Donaldson but don’t appear to be …

Cardinals: The contract extension given to struggling Matt Carpenter before last season is the stated reason the team claims it isn’t going after any third basemen. But if Carpenter -- who is signed through 2021 with a '22 team option -- struggles in '20 like he did in '19, St. Louis will very much regret sitting these sweepstakes out.

D-backs: Jake Lamb (combined .665 OPS the last two years) hardly seems like the answer for a team that was a quiet contender last year.

Phillies: It is sort of bizarre that the Phillies have been silent about potentially stealing away a division rival’s third baseman when they could really use a big-hitting third baseman.

Yankees: With Gio Urshela and Miguel Andújar, third base isn’t entirely settled. So hey, why not at this point?