Atlanta Braves: History of 3B in their mid-to-late 30s

There has been skepticism over the Atlanta Braves adding a fourth year to a contract offer for Josh  Donaldson. How have other third basemen played over their mid-to-late 30’s?

While an actual report has never surfaced, conclusions have been drawn about the Atlanta Braves reluctance in offering Josh Donaldson a four-year contract due to him turning 34 next year.

The assumption is that if the Braves had offered JD four years by now, he would have taken it. That seems logical.

So is an extra year really that big of a deal?

Regression is the key concern, but look at some of the best third basemen off all-time and it might not be as concerning after all.

In this analysis, I looked at eight of the best third basemen ever and researched how their careers looked from age 34 to 37.

It was surprising how productive most of them were. Some more than others, of course, but only one player drastically declined once age 35 came calling.

Even more support for Donaldson — all eight players had played in 1,620 games or more through their age 33 seasons.

Donaldson has played in only 1,038 games, so the wear and tear on his body is nearly four seasons less than the others.

Obviously, Braves fans know of a particular third baseman who was incredibly productive until retiring. But Chipper Jones’ numbers were not even the best.

Does this mean anything? Who knows, but I found it to be interesting just how good these players were in their mid-30s.

Not only were they good players, but also most were still being selected to the All-Star game and winning various awards.

So let’s first look at the four players who were still All-Star players well into their 30s.