Needing one more piece to solidify their everyday lineup, the Seattle Mariners acquired All-Star infielder Brendan Donovan from the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday to highlight a three-team deal that also included the Tampa Bay Rays.
The versatile Donovan, 29, earned an All-Star spot last year as a second baseman, but he appeared at every position except pitcher, catcher and center field during his four-year run with the Cardinals that featured a slash line of .282/.361/.411. He earned a Gold Glove for his utility work during his rookie year in 2022.
To nab Donovan, who has a $5.8 million deal for 2026 and another year beyond that before becoming a free agent, the Mariners reportedly are sending 2024 first-round pick Jurrangelo Cijntje, a switch-pitcher, and 2023 first-round pick Tai Peete to St. Louis and second-year third baseman Ben Williamson to Tampa Bay.
The Rays, in turn, are sending Double-A outfielder Colton Ledbetter and a Comp B draft pick to the Cardinals.
Donovan gives the Mariners a fourth All-Star for their lineup — joining catcher Cal Raleigh, center fielder Julio Rodriguez and left fielder Randy Arozarena. Donovan can fit in at third base, which Eugenio Suarez vacated as a free agent ticketed for the Cincinnati Reds, or he can move to second if the Mariners decide 22-year-old Cole Young isn’t ready to be a regular there.
Cijntje provides the Cardinals yet another young starter with six years of control. The 22-year-old Netherlands native made 26 appearances (23 starts) between High-A Everett and Double-A Arkansas last season and compiled a 5-7 record with a 3.99 ERA, 120 strikeouts and 51 walks.
Of the 459 batters he faced last year, Cijntje threw right-handed to 397 of them. He piled up 111 strikeouts versus 32 walks as a righty but nine strikeouts and 19 walks as a lefty.
Peete, 20, hit just .217 while spending all last season at High-A Everett, but he produced 19 homers and 25 steals while playing center field.
Williamson, Seattle’s second-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, made his big-league debut last year and compiled a .253/.294/.310 slash line in 85 games with one homer, 21 RBIs and five steals. The 25-year-old did not appear during the Mariners’ postseason run to Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.
Ledbetter, 24, spent all of 2025 with Double-A Montgomery and fashioned a .265 average with 37 stolen bases and seven homers. Ledbetter and Cijntje were teammates at Mississippi State in 2023.
