The Cleveland Indians made a big splash in the trade market on Saturday, reportedly reaching an agreement to acquire catcher Jonathan Lucroy from the Milwaukee Brewers, per Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
Brewers reportedly agree to trade Jonathan Lucroy to Indians
Lucroy needs to waive his no-trade clause to complete the trade.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Lucroy has a no-trade clause that he will need to waive in order for the trade to be completed.
Milwaukee will reportedly receive four players in the deal, per Rosenthal. One of the prospects could be left-handed pitcher Justus Sheffield, per Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Another is catcher Francisco Mejia, per Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball. The others are reportedly shortstop Yu-Cheng Chang and outfielder Greg Allen, per Rosenthal.
The Brewers held Lucroy out of their starting lineup on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, with manager Craig Counsell telling reporters that things were progressing with the catcher, per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Lucroy is one of the best hitting catchers in baseball, hitting .300/.360/.484 with 13 home runs this season. He was a National League All-Star for a second time in 2016, and is two years removed from hitting .301/.373/.465 while setting an MLB record for catchers with 53 doubles, earning him a fourth-place finish in MVP voting.
The Indians were especially interested in Lucroy after losing catcher Yan Gomes to a separated AC joint in his shoulder, expected to be out until late August or September.
Jerry Crasnick of ESPN reported earlier in the week that several teams were interested in Lucroy, including the Texas Rangers, Houston Astros, New York Mets and Boston Red Sox, with Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports also reporting the Detroit Tigers' interest as well.
What makes the 30-year-old Lucroy an even more attractive addition is that he’s not a two-month rental. He has a team-friendly club option worth $5.25 million for 2016, with a $250,000 buyout, per Cot’s Contracts.
Lucroy makes $4 million this year, with roughly $1.4 million remaining for the rest of the season.
Baseball’s non-waiver trade deadline is 4 p.m. ET on Monday.
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