Josh Donaldson joins Auburn baseball's Wall of Fame

AUBURN, Ala. –  Josh Donaldson takes his place among Auburn baseball’s greats Friday, joining Bo Jackson, Frank Thomas, Gregg Olson and Tim Hudson on the Wall of Fame at Plainsman Park.

“I was thrilled,” Donaldson told Andy Burcham during a Talking Tigers podcast. “Not a lot of people get that opportunity. To be on the wall with the guys who are up there is special and I appreciate it very much.”

Donaldson’s No. 4 jersey will reside at the bottom of the War Eagle Wall in left field, alongside the quartet of fellow legends. Beyond the wall in right field, the Josh Donaldson Hitting Lab highlights Auburn’s Player Development Center, for which Donaldson made a leadership gift.

“I’ve been extremely blessed to be in the position to be able to give back,” said Donaldson, recalling how he and his teammates used to sneak into Plainsman Park’s batting cages two decades earlier. “I wanted the guys who were going to come to Auburn to feel like they were not going to be missing anything and they were going to have every chance to develop and become the best player. It’s fitting that we were able to do that.”

Donaldson starred for the Tigers from 2005-07, batting .307 with 28 career home runs before being selected by the Chicago Cubs with the 48th overall pick in the Major League Baseball Draft.

“That’s a special coaching staff for me to want to come back to and see and be a part of what they have going on there,” Donaldson said. “I believe in them. I know they’re going to put their best foot forward year in and year out to give Auburn the best chance to win and to do what’s right by those boys who are there.”

Twenty years ago, Donaldson was one of those boys, an ultra-talented baseball and football standout from Faith Academy in Mobile.

“I took pride in all aspects of my game,” he said. “Whether it was running, defense, hitting, I enjoyed all of it, and that’s what really benefited me throughout my career.”

Auburn head coach Butch Thompson was the Tigers’ pitching coach during Donaldson’s time on the Plains.

“He had great skills,” Thompson said. “He’s not scared of anybody or anything. I’m proud of him. It took him a long time to get to the big leagues. He stayed in it and kept fighting. I’m proud of the young man who I knew to the grown man who I know now, how he’s given back to us. He’s poured into our players and program. He’s helped us.”

Donaldson debuted for the Oakland Athletics in 2010 and blasted 279 homers over a 13-year MLB career to become Auburn’s third-longest-tenured big league position player behind fellow Wall of Famer Thomas (18 years) and David Ross (15 years).

The 2015 American League Most Valuable Player for Toronto, Donaldson joined Thomas as the only players in program history to be league MVPs.

“I always played with a little bit of a chip on my shoulder,” said Donaldson, a three-time All-Star. “I was never the biggest guy, I was probably never the most talented guy out there.”

Inspired by a “Rocky” line about getting hit hard and still moving forward, Donaldson persevered, getting demoted to the minors multiple time before finally sticking and eventually becoming a star.

“I took the punches, but they couldn’t keep me down for long,” he said. “The fortitude of not quitting. I’m not going to stop until I figure this out. I earned every day that I spent in the big leagues because I put my whole life into it.”

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer