Jonathan Lucroy invokes no-trade clause, vetoes trade to the Indians
One of the biggest trades of the summer has fallen through.
[Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now]
According to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Jonathan Lucroy has elected to exercise his no-trade clause and veto a trade to the Cleveland Indians that would have brought four prospects back to Milwaukee.
Jonathan Lucroy has exercised his no-trade clause and vetoed trade from #Brewers to Indians. Details to come.
— Tom (@Haudricourt) July 31, 2016
For the time being anyway, Lucroy is still with the Brewers, though there’s still time for Milwaukee to swing another trade and there’s still time for Cleveland to convince Lucroy to change his mind. In fact, it’s reported that effort is well underway right now.
Sources: Effort to convince Lucroy to change his mind and accept CLE trade will continue.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 31, 2016
It’s almost certain Lucroy will require a new contract agreement to agree to a trade to a team on his no-trade list. The 30-year-old catcher earned a $4M salary this season and has a $5.2M team option next season that Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan reports Lucroy would like to see torn up.
Sources: Jonathan Lucroy wanted Indians to rip up 2017 club option to get him to waive no-trade clause. Understandably, Cleveland said no.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 31, 2016
It's understandable, too, that Jonathan Lucroy asked for 2017 club option to go away. No-trade clause is cudgel. Should be wielded as such.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 31, 2016
For now, Lucroy is still with the Brewers in Milwaukee as they prepare to face the Pittsburgh Pirates. He was also available to the media, but shed little light on the circumstances of his decision.
Jonathan Lucroy: pic.twitter.com/wZH6Hs1LtT
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) July 31, 2016
By vetoing the trade, Lucroy could be back in play for teams like the New York Mets and Texas Rangers, who were aggressive suitors prior to Cleveland emerging as the temporary winner. Another team could also emerge from the rubble to pull off a stunner. With some leverage potentially lost though, it’s possible Milwaukee won’t receive as strong a return.
There are obviously a lot of variables involved, and there’s still nearly 30 hours to get it sorted out. But we’d say the trade deadline just got real.
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
