John Donaldson — Diamond 91 OVR Starting Pitcher Overview
John Donaldson is a Diamond 91 OVR Starting Pitcher card for the Free Agents, part of the The Negro Leagues set in MLB The Show's Diamond Dynasty. He throws left-handed. As a two-way card, he can be used as both a hitter and a pitcher in the same lineup. He is also eligible at Center Fielder. The card was added to Diamond Dynasty in April 2026.
On the mound, John Donaldson works with a 5-pitch arsenal led by a 99 mph 4-Seam Fastball and a 95 mph Sinker. His pitching ratings include 99 Velocity, 62 Control, and 95 Break. The profile favors a movement-heavy arsenal built to miss bats.
John Donaldson is eligible at 2 positions, and DiamondOps scores each one separately: Center Fielder (79.7) and Designated Hitter (72.8) on All-Star. The best fit is Center Fielder rather than the listed Starting Pitcher, and that holds at every difficulty. At Center Fielder the card scores 79.7 on All-Star, 82.4 on Hall of Fame, and 82.4 on Legend — it keeps 103% of its All-Star value at the top difficulty, which is unusually durable. Among Starting Pitchers the card ranks #215 on Hall of Fame and #232 on All-Star.
DiamondOps grades each pitch in John Donaldson's arsenal: Slider (S), 4-Seam Fastball (S), Sinker (S), Forkball (A), and Slurve (B). 3 of them grade S-tier, which is what separates a genuine out-pitch mix from a deep-but-flat arsenal. Its strongest tunnel pairing is the 4-Seam Fastball off the Sinker, so the two share a release look. Its 99 mph 4-Seam Fastball adds a velocity bonus on top. Arsenal grades are the same at every difficulty — unlike a hitter's OpScore, a pitch mix does not re-weight as you climb.
On the Diamond Dynasty market, John Donaldson currently buys for about 21,110 stubs, with sell orders near 18,301 stubs. Over the past 7 days the buy price has fallen roughly 16%. Flipping at current buy and sell prices nets roughly 696 stubs, about a 4% return. DiamondOps suggests waiting for a better entry point.
OpScore is DiamondOps' composite rating of a card's in-game performance value. John Donaldson earns an OpScore of 77.9 on Legend difficulty, ranking #1035 among all cards and #220 among Starting Pitchers.
Common questions
- What is John Donaldson's overall rating in MLB The Show 26?
- John Donaldson is a 91 OVR Diamond Starting Pitcher for the Free Agents.
- Is John Donaldson a good card in MLB The Show 26?
- Among Starting Pitchers, John Donaldson ranks #232 on All-Star, #215 on Hall of Fame, and #220 on Legend by OpScore — DiamondOps' difficulty-aware rating: it weights the attributes that decide at-bats and recomputes them for each difficulty, whereas in-game Overall is a single number that does not change with the level you play on.
- What quirks does John Donaldson have in MLB The Show 26?
- John Donaldson has 3 quirks: Homebody, Pick Off Artist, and Day Player.
- How much does John Donaldson cost in Diamond Dynasty?
- The last recorded buy-now price was 21,110 stubs. Prices move constantly on the in-game marketplace — the chart on this page tracks the card's real history rather than a single snapshot.
Where to go next
Every link below comes from this card's own series, team, rarity, position, or the collections and programs it belongs to.
- Legends and Flashbacks — Jackie Robinson DayA collection this card counts toward.
- Legends and Flashbacks — The Negro LeaguesA collection this card counts toward.
- Best Starting PitchersThe top starting pitchers in the game, ranked by OpScore.
- Best Center FieldersThe top center fielders in the game, ranked by OpScore.
- The Negro Leagues CardsEvery The Negro Leagues card, filterable by position, team and rating.
- Free Agents CardsEvery Free Agents card in the game, with live market prices.
- Diamond CardsEvery Diamond card, ranked by overall rating.
- High Diamonds (85+ OVR)Overall is one number that never changes with difficulty. Two 87s can be a full tier apart in practice, which is what OpScore on each row is for.
- Diamond RadarWhich cards our model predicts will be upgraded at the next roster update.