Jonathan Lucroy exercised his no-trade clause, killing the trade between the Brewers and the Indians.
Per @bnightengale, #Indians told Lucroy he would be backup C/1B/DH in 17, with Gomes regular C. Team says it simply made Lucroy no promises.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 31, 2016
Lucroy gave brief explanation of decision : wants long-term gain not short term gain.
— Tom (@Haudricourt) July 31, 2016
Maybe some other team will be willing to give Lucroy more of a long-term promise. He is seasonal age 30, so he is likely to decline in the next few years, as catchers tend to decline faster than other position players. He may have blown a chance to win a World Series.
Listened to the Indians radio announcer on the way back to Toledo this afternoon. Very excited about Miller but highly critical about Lucroy. Cleveland is one of the teams on his no trade list. The guy seemed to think he should have waived it for no compensation (vesting the team option, eliminating the team option or making him the starter for next year.
Teams, when they part with a popular player often say “it’s just business” The same applies for players. This was a hard fought right for the players (thanks, Curt Flood), it has value. Cleveland should have expected to pay for it. Lucroy has no guaranteed money after this year, a devastating injury and he might be lucky to be a minor league instructor.