Mariners Lose Brendan Donovan to Concussion IL Just as His Bat Catches Fire

The Seattle Mariners just lost one of their most reliable bats to the 7-day concussion injured list, according to MLB Trade Rumors. Brendan Donovan is officially sidelined, pausing a season where he has quietly been holding the infield together.

Losing a guy who is actively producing at the plate is the baseball equivalent of dropping a fresh pizza face-down on the sidewalk. Donovan was just starting to cook, logging multi-hit performances in three of his last four games.

"MLB Trade Rumors reported the roster move on Sunday."

He went 2-for-5 with an RBI in Friday's 6-5 extra-inning win over the Chicago Cubs. Before that, he was one of the only watchable parts of a brutal stretch against the Milwaukee Brewers, which included a historic 22-0 blowout loss that probably gave the entire fanbase a collective headache.

For the season, the third baseman is hitting .277 with a .780 OPS. He is playing on a one-year, $5.8 million deal and already fought through a groin strain back in May, making this latest setback incredibly frustrating for a guy trying to secure his next payday.

From a betting perspective, Seattle's run-production props just got a lot murkier. Donovan has been a steady presence in a lineup that desperately needs guys who can simply put the ball in play.

The Mariners now have to scramble their infield rotation heading into Sunday's series finale against the Cubs. After that, they welcome the Philadelphia Phillies to town, meaning Seattle has exactly zero time to feel sorry for itself while trying to patch the hole at third base.