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Report: Cardinals interested in Donaldson

Peter Aiken / Reuters

One day after a report surfaced claiming rival executives were under the belief the Toronto Blue Jays were going to become sellers prior to the July 31 trade deadline, the St. Louis Cardinals apparently have their eyes on one particular player from Toronto.

The Cardinals are interested in third baseman and 2015 American League MVP Josh Donaldson, according to sources of FOX Sports' Jon Morosi, although the two sides have not yet had any formal discussions.

Morosi later named the San Francisco Giants as another potential suitor for Donaldson during an appearance on MLB Network.

Even after releasing veteran Jhonny Peralta in June, the Cardinals have received a decent amount of production from third, with Jedd Gyorko (.301/.368/.516, 12 home runs, 41 RBIs) getting most of the work.

However, adding an MVP such as Donaldson would certainly be an upgrade for the Cardinals, who sit 4 1/2 games back of the NL Central leading Milwaukee Brewers.

The Blue Jays sit at the bottom of the AL East at 38-45, and with them sliding down the standings after two consecutive postseason appearances, a fire sale could be in their future.

Donaldson, 31, has only appeared in 41 of Toronto's 83 games this season after missing time with a calf injury.

Despite only hitting .243, his lowest average since 2012, the popular Blue Jays slugger still owns a .819 OPS to go along with eight home runs and 20 RBIs.

Donaldson is owed the remainder of his $17 million salary for this season, is eligible for arbitration in 2018, and is set to become a free agent in 2019.

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