Welcome to 'The Barn': Brendan Donovan's new at-home training grounds

JUPITER, Fla. -- A self-professed “homebody” -- even though he had lots of different homes growing up in a military family -- Brendan Donovan wanted a new property that could meet his living and workout needs when he and his wife, Aly, decided to relocate from South Florida to South Alabama this past offseason.

The land Aly turned him onto was near their Alabama roots. It featured slightly less than 10,000 acres with no nearby neighbors, and it already had a perfectly sized home in place for their expanding family. However, it was the building out back, later named “The Barn” by the Donovans, that kick-started the creative juices for the Cardinals' versatile defensive stalwart.

Originally a workshop used while the modern home was being constructed, the building out back was ultimately converted into a baseball haven by Donovan. The new facility gave him a place to hit in the cages, take ground balls on artificial turf and do recovery work in a sauna and cold tub. The building was both the realization of a dream and a vision Donovan hopes will better him as a player for years to come.

“It’s something of my own, and I can encourage [my teammates] to come to town and train and build a community there with workout partners,” said Donovan, whose Cardinals beat the Nationals, 7-1 on Wednesday. “It’s something for my wife to use and something, eventually, our kid, and hopefully kids, can use as an indoor fun house.

“But for me, it's a healthy reminder when I look outside, 'Hey, go get some work done!'”

Donovan, who had an opposite-field RBI single in the fourth inning of Wednesday’s win, has regularly used the offseason to better himself as a player. Having hit five homers as a rookie in 2022 -- when he posted an impressive 124 OPS+ rating -- Donovan boosted his strength and contact rate, hitting 11 homers in '23 and 14 in '24.

Last season, the gritty utility player led Cardinals qualified starters in hits (163), doubles (34), batting average (.278), on-base percentage (.342) and OPS (.759). The fact that Donovan, 28, bought and designed a facility where he could spend more time working on his craft speaks to his dedication, manager Oliver Marmol said.

“I appreciate it a ton when a guy like him takes it upon himself to have ownership of his career,” Marmol raved. “To go to that extent [of creating the facility], that’s another whole level, wanting to have everything in-house to give yourself the best chance of maximizing your abilities. That’s a good place to be … and for [Donovan] to do that, it’s meaningful.”

The vision for “The Barn” in the coastal town of Fairhope, Ala., was Donovan’s, but the physical creation of many of its aspects came about because of the sweat equity of Aly and her father. From there, a neighbor who lives miles away -- “because we live in the middle of nowhere,” Donovan joked -- helped apply the bright red paint on the outside of the facility. The Donovans hung the cables, batting practice netting and high school and MLB banners featuring pictures of Brendan and Aly. They even helped the contractor lay the turf and rubber flooring. And the backdrop in the batting cage features a green wall topped with a bright yellow line -- just like at Busch Stadium.

As for the sign signifying the official name of the facility, that was a Christmas present from Aly to Brendan.

“We were trying to come up with a creative name, but I'd always say, ‘I’m heading to the barn,’” Brendan said with a laugh. “Or Aly would say, ‘What are you doing?’ I'd say, ‘I’m in the barn.’ So, that’s the name we used.”

Asked what a 10-year-old Brendan would have thought of a facility most kids can only dream about, Donovan said, “He’d probably want to put a bed in there.” But there’s little sleeping that goes on once Donovan gets to work with physical therapist Adham Rashwan and hitting coach Jordan Patterson.

Donovan prefers the kind of workouts that require him to exert himself physically while also having to think -- as he does during games. One such drill involves balancing his feet on a soft half-ball while Rashwan throws a colored three-pronged item for him to catch by the announced color. In terms of baseball drills, Aly often feeds balls into a machine so it can fire grounders at her husband.

“I think the hardest part is just getting to the gym, and this allows me to wake up and get to work,” Donovan said. “I try to get up and get moving in the offseason, because I think that makes Spring Training an easier adjustment. I want to get up, get in there and start moving every day.”