Alex Anthopoulos and the Toronto Blue Jays were very aggressive this offseason in trying to improve a team that finished third in the AL East last year with a 83-79 record. 

Arguably the most important acquisition was third baseman Josh Donaldson, whom the Jays received in a surprising five-player deal last November.  Donaldson, a late bloomer who recorded monster seasons in each of the past two seasons, made only about $500,000 in 2014 with the Oakland Athletics.

While the A's were obviously getting his outstanding play at a ridiculous bargain, it was understandable because Donaldson was still within his first five seasons as a big league regular. 

But on Friday, Donaldson was absolutely shafted.  In his first time being eligible for arbitration, he lost to the team, according to the three arbitrators who heard his case, and will make $4.3 million in 2015 instead of the $5.75 million he would have earned had he won the case.

The most glaring reason that this is absurd is Donaldson's tremendous production in the past two seasons.  In that span, he hit .277 with 53 home runs, 191 RBI and a phenomenal 15.4 WAR, according to Baseball-Reference.com.  He finished in the top eight in the MVP voting in both seasons and plays terrific defense in addition to his hitting.

With numbers like that, there is no question he should be making way more than $4.3 million.  To be clear, $4.3 million is an obscenely large amount of money and is plenty for any human to live off, but in an age where teams are spending outrageous sums of money on players, Donaldson deserves much more.

Let's compare him to a few other players.  First, let's take Seattle Mariners third baseman Kyle Seager, whose breakout 2014 season netted him a seven-year, $100 million contract.  Seager is a nice player, but he is nowhere near as skilled as Donaldson.

Donaldson recorded a higher WAR than Seager last year, and even though Seager is touted as a great fielding third baseman and won the Gold Glove award in 2014, Donaldson's defensive WAR was better than Seager's, according to Baseball-Reference.com.

Yours truly understands that Seager is younger and might have more long-term potential, but Donaldson is the better player now, and the two will make about the same amount of money in 2015.

It's easy to forget just how elite Donaldson has been.  Going by WAR, according to Baseball-Reference.com, Donaldson has been the third-most valuable player in baseball since 2013, trailing only Mike Trout and Clayton Kershaw.

Before you crucify this writer for using a stat like WAR, let your humble correspondent explain this logic. This writer is not necessarily saying that Donaldson is MLB's third-best player, but WAR at least takes everything into account and puts it into one number, making it easier to compare players. 

Like WAR or hate it, it has a mathematical basis, and it really likes Josh Donaldson.  And the fact that a trio of judges wouldn't side with him is mind-boggling.

Adrian Beltre, the Texas Rangers' third baseman, is thought of by most as the best all-around third baseman in the league.  He made $17 million in 2014.  Donaldson might not be as good as Beltre, but he isn't far behind.  As it stands, Beltre will make approximately four times what Donaldson will in 2015.

That is highway robbery if I've ever seen it, and the Blue Jays should be embarrassed for sticking it to their new acquisition.

Donaldson should hit at least 25 home runs with 90 RBI, playing home games in the hitter-friendly Rogers Centre and in the other AL East parks where plenty of runs are scored.  Fangraphs' The Steamer projects him at 26 homers and 81 RBI, but that is a bit pessimistic, especially hitting in a lineup with sluggers Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion.

The only downside to Donaldson is the fact that he is 29 years old and has only recorded two significant big league seasons.  However, that should not be held against him. 

ESPN.com's David Schoenfield wrote an article in early January about whether or not Donaldson can continue his success, and after taking statistics and past history into account, his conclusion was that Donaldson will have no trouble sustaining his productivity down the road.

We're not sure what kind of arguments Donaldson's side brought up during arbitration, but there is no way he should have lost.  He is one of the top three third basemen in the league, and the fact that he wasn't awarded the $5.75 million he asked for is crazy.

Even if he had won the negotiation, he would still be underpaid.

Ultimately, the Blue Jays are getting All-Star caliber production at third base very cheaply for 2015.  And Donaldson will fetch plenty of money when he reaches free agency, so it's not like he's completely out of luck.

But for now, Donaldson is going to be arguably the biggest bargain in all of baseball, and it is absolutely unbelievable that he lost his case.