Brendan

Donovan

Donovan had been feeling a bit under the weather so the Mariners thought it wise to give him the night off. Leo Rivas will start in his place at third base and bat ninth while J.P. Crawford serves as the M’s leadoff hitter against Tatsuya Imai and the Astros on Friday evening in Seattle.

Donovan jumped on Nathan Eovaldi right away, taking the first pitch of the game deep to right field for a solo blast. He added a base hit in the third for his second hit of the game. The home run was the third of the season for the 29-year-old infielder. While not exactly known as a power hitter, Donovan is pulling the ball more than ever. If he can sustain that profile, he could certainly tap into more power than he’s previously displayed, with a career-high 14 in 2024.

Donovan returns to Seattle’s leadoff spot following a two-game absence due to groin soreness. It’s an extremely encouraging development that the 29-year-old second baseman managed to avoid a trip to the injured list. He’s gotten off to a sizzling-hot start at the plate in his Mariners debut, hitting .370 (10-for-27) with two homers, four RBI and one steal through eight games.

Donovan will go through pregame drills on the field on Sunday, but he wants to be extra cautious after undergoing double sports hernia surgery last year. He’s encouraged that his MRI came back clean and is expected to avoid the injured list, it’s just going to take him another day or two before he rejoins the lineup.

It sounds like Donovan, who was relieved to find no problem related to the hernia surgery he had after last season, might be back in there Sunday or Monday. Leo Rivas is playing third base in his place tonight.

Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports that Donovan underwent imaging Saturday, and the team is still processing the results. The 29-year-old will miss the the contest against the Angels, and if he does need a trip on the injured list, it could open up a spot for top prospect Colt Emerson. Fantasy managers should be prepared.

Donovan exited Saturday’s game with leg discomfort, and he unsurprisingly will miss at least one more contest. Luke Raley is moving up to the leadoff spot with Donovan out, and Leo Rivas will handle third base and hit ninth.

The Mariners didn’t have much to say about the injury after the game. Donovan left in the seventh inning after his leg came down awkwardly on the first-base bag while trying to leg out a grounder. If Donovan is unavailable Saturday, the Mariners would likely start utility specialist Leo Rivas at third base. An extended absence could potentially open the door for top prospect Colt Emerson, who has been playing third base down at Triple-A Tacoma.

Donovan might have tweaked an ankle stepping on first base while trying to beat out a grounder. He’s probably day-to-day, but if it does turn out to be something significant, Colt Emerson could join the Mariners sooner than expected.

Donovan’s career high for homers is 14, but he already has two this year. Even more fascinating is that he’s already tried two steals, converting one of them. While Donovan was a very good regular for St. Louis, the lack of homers and steals always left him with little fantasy value. Last year, he had 10 homers and three steals in 2025. In his best season in 2024, he had 14 homers and five steals. We wouldn’t necessarily expect him to best that homer total this year, but if he’s more aggressive on the basepaths, it’d be great for his fantasy value. It just might not be too good for the Mariners, since he’s been caught on 13 of his 29 career steal attempts.