Gabe Lacques

USA TODAY Sports

In a surprising five-player deal that marks the go-for-broke mentality of one club and the possible rebuilding of another, the Oakland Athletics traded All-Star third baseman Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday.

The Blue Jays sent oft-injured third baseman Brett Lawrie, pitching prospects Sean Nolin and Kendall Graveman and minor league shortstop Franklin Barreto back to Oakland as A's general manager Billy Beane once again embarks on an aggressive re-tooling of his team.

Donaldson turns 29 on Dec. 8, and has four years remaining before he can become a free agent, which would seem to make him a prime candidate to remain with even the cash-conscious A's for a while.

But Beane is renowned for dealing players a year too soon rather than waiting for their value to fall due to poor performance or looming free agency. He recently committed $30 million over three seasons to designated hitter Billy Butler, so a full-fledged rebuilding seems unlikely.

As for the Blue Jays? They get one of the game's most dynamic two-way performers. Donaldson finished second in Wins Above Replacement in the American League each of the past two seasons, as much for his outstanding -- at times, acrobatic -- defensive play as his .363 on base percentage and .840 on base plus slugging in that span.

Now, he will work alongside All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes while enabling the Blue Jays to hold onto cash to pursue upgrades in the outfield and starting rotation. Donaldson and Lawrie both will be arbitration eligible for the first time, though Donaldson's superior production ensures he'll make a significant amount more in 2015 - $4.5 million, projects MLB Trade Rumors, compared to Lawrie's $1.8 million.

That will still leave plenty of money for the Blue Jays to make some aggressive moves this winter, and it's clear they're just getting started. They already guaranteed catcher Russell Martin $82 million over five years, and must fill holes in the starting rotation, bullpen, outfield and second base.

The A's? After three consecutive playoff appearances - the latter a wild card berth after a free fall the last two months of the season - they're left to wonder what exactly Beane has in mind for them.

"It doesn't make sense to me," outfielder Josh Reddick told The San Francisco Chronicle. "We traded our best player the past two years."

Added Donaldson: "I'm so shocked. I guess they got an offer that they couldn't resist. I'm definitely a little emotional about it. Oakland is my home.

"At the end of the day, it's a business, as much as it hurts emotionally. The guys in that clubhouse are my brothers."

Beane said on a conference call Friday night that Lawrie - who turns 25 in January, yet has never played more than 125 games due to injuries - will slide into Donaldson's spot at third base. He cited the losses of lefty Jon Lester - whose July 31 acquisition for outfielder Yoenis Cespedes preceded the A's late-season slide - reliever Luke Gregerson and shortstop Jed Lowrie as the impetus to significantly make over the roster.

"We had to take a look at where we are and where we're headed," he said, "and keep in mind we were 11 games behind the Angels and (one game ahead of) the Mariners. We didn't think it was possible to add to the current group to make up an 11-game difference. We thought we had to do something that wasn't timid.

"Hopefully we (end up with) a team getting better every day as opposed to one that maybe was starting to deteriorate."

The prize for the A's figures to be Barreto, 18, who received a $1.45 million signing bonus from the Blue Jays when they signed him out of Venezuela in July 2012. Barreto has just 132 professional games on his resume - he played 73 games at rookie level Vancouver (B.C.) in 2014 - and doesn't figure to be major league ready until well into the 2016 season at the earliest.

He essentially replaces Addison Russell, the club's top shortstop prospect who was dealt on July 4 to the Chicago Cubs for pitcher Jeff Samardzija - who also could find himself on the trade block soon.

"We've spent a lot of minor league capital the past couple of years," Beane said.

Graveman, 23, moved quickly through the Blue Jays system after they drafted him in the eighth round in 2013. He made five relief appearances for Toronto late last season after going 14-6 with a 1.83 ERA at four minor league levels in his first full pro season. Nolin, a left-hander selected in the sixth round in 2010, made one appearance with Toronto each of the past two seasons,but pitched just 97 innings at three minor league levels last season, posting a 3.43 ERA and 1.22 WHIP.

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