Josh Donaldson is a former AL MVP, a three-time All-Star, a two-time Silver Slugger … and an adult softball legend.
The 13-year big leaguer, best known for his time with the Blue Jays, has been retired for a handful of years now. But the Toronto uniform is apparently still ready to be put to use, as he donned it when he stepped to the plate for the “Brew Jays,” a Toronto-area rec league softball team.
Donaldson promptly crushed a homer, complete with a bat raise, a bat flip and a thoroughly enjoyed jaunt around the bases while giving high-fives to members of both teams.
According to the Toronto Sun, Donaldson also whacked a double and made plenty of plays in the field, providing maximum return on investment on the one-day contract he signed with the Brew Jays.
And how do you get an MLB MVP to play on your adult softball team? All it took was asking.
“After a bad loss last week, one of our players was fed up and decided to shoot JD a random DM and he responded ‘where are you at and when do you play,’” the Brew Jays said on Tuesday, according to the Sun. “After some coordination, we hammered down the date, and he showed up with a full camera crew and played the full nine innings.”
Unfortunately for the Brew Jays, not even Donaldson -- who owned a career .847 OPS with 279 homers in MLB -- could pull them out of their slump. They lost the game, 12-9.
Oh well. That’s one heck of a moment for all those involved, win or lose.