Lucroy wants to be traded to a contender

[Clem Fandango]

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/14604916/jonathan-lucroy-milwaukee-brewers-hoping-trade-contender

 

"I'm not going to sit here and say we're going to compete for the playoffs this year," Lucroy told the newspaper in a telephone interview. "If I did that, you'd call me a liar. I'd lose credibility and respect. I want to win, and I don't see us winning in the foreseeable future. I want to go to a World Series. That's what all players want. Rebuilding is not a lot of fun for any veteran guy."

 

"It's not guaranteed that I'm going to win if I am traded, but I'm going to be a 30-year-old catcher," he said. "I can't put numbers on how much longer I'm going to play, but as players, we want to win. I don't care about the money. I just want to win. That's the bottom line."

 

If it were earlier in the offseason I imagine there'd be grumblings of moving Miggy and his salary in an attempt to pry Lucroy away, but it feels a little late in the game for a strategy like that, not to mention Montero is perfectly fine where he is.

 

That said, Milwaukee is a sinking ship and Lucroy is one of the few enviable targets on their team, IMO. We have two years of Miggy left at $28 million total. Lucroy, with his 2017 club option, would be a shade under $10 million instead. The salary relief would be nice, but is it even worth it considering Montero has good value to the team already while Lucroy is relying on a comeback?

[Bryants Disco Ball]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

[Bull]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

That must have been one serious concussion.

Edited January 20, 2016 by Bull

[NonProfitCow]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

That must have been one serious concussion.

They all are.

[dawson1989]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

That must have been one serious concussion.

They all are.

 

Baseball isn't football. The likelihood of taking a major hit to the head again isn't very good.

[Ding Dong Johnson]

That must have been one serious concussion.

They all are.

 

Baseball isn't football. The likelihood of taking a major hit to the head again isn't very good.

Unless you're catching nearly every day.

[Bryants Disco Ball]

That must have been one serious concussion.

They all are.

 

Baseball isn't football. The likelihood of taking a major hit to the head again isn't very good.

 

You are right implying that more concussions occur in football. But catchers have sustained three to five times more concussions than all other positions have and 2.5 times more than pitchers.

 

The reasons for that are obvious, and so when a catcher sustains a concussion like Lucroy did, it needs to be at least considered when talking about trading for him.

Edited January 21, 2016 by Bryant's Disco Ball

[Sammy Sofa]

That must have been one serious concussion.

They all are.

 

Baseball isn't football. The likelihood of taking a major hit to the head again isn't very good.

 

MLB hasn't been pro-active with concussion protocols just for fun; you're understating how likely it is for a baseball player to get one.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Was it him who's wife broke his hand with a suitcase or something?

[Cubswin11]

Was it him who's wife broke his hand with a suitcase or something?

Yeah it was either his hand or foot and he claimed she dropped it on him or accidentally slammed his foot/hand in it.

[seanimal]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

That must have been one serious concussion.

 

also known as a "concussion"

[Bull]

I'd rather keep the prospects for what the Cubs feel they need at the deadline then get Lucroy right now. He's been super solid for a few years, but there is no promise that last season's issues aren't a sign of things to come rather than a bump in the road. Not to mention he had a concussion that knocked him out for the last few weeks.

That must have been one serious concussion.

 

also known as a "concussion"

 

I've had concussions on multiple occasions. A pretty serious one in a flip over car accident that also broke my third cervical vertebra. Don't lecture me. The wording was funny. Made it sound like he was unconscious for several weeks. Lighten up.

[seanimal]

look i'm sorry you broke your cervix or whatever but i wasn't exactly being serious

[Bull]

look i'm sorry you broke your cervix or whatever but i wasn't exactly being serious

Fair enough. You were the second guy to comment something that made it sound like I was horrible person for making light of concussions. I just happen to find humor in everything. You name it, I can laugh at it. And my cervix is just fine, thank you. Wait, what?

[Tracer Bullet]

look i'm sorry you broke your cervix or whatever but i wasn't exactly being serious

Fair enough. You were the second guy to comment something that made it sound like I was horrible person for making light of concussions. I just happen to find humor in everything. You name it, I can laugh at it. And my cervix is just fine, thank you. Wait, what?

 

odd that you find humor in everything but tell someone making a joke not to lecture you.

[Bull]

look i'm sorry you broke your cervix or whatever but i wasn't exactly being serious

Fair enough. You were the second guy to comment something that made it sound like I was horrible person for making light of concussions. I just happen to find humor in everything. You name it, I can laugh at it. And my cervix is just fine, thank you. Wait, what?

 

odd that you find humor in everything but tell someone making a joke not to lecture you.

Yep, probably should have responded to nonprofitcow's smug response instead.

[jersey cubs fan]

That must have been one serious concussion.

 

also known as a "concussion"

 

I've had concussions on multiple occasions. A pretty serious one in a flip over car accident that also broke my third cervical vertebra. Don't lecture me. The wording was funny. Made it sound like he was unconscious for several weeks. Lighten up.

lighten up francis

[Cubbie Swagger]

We have Miguel Montero AND Kyle Schwarber and we are talking about catchers?

[Cubswin11]

Catchers that might shake free during or after this upcoming season, in no order:

 

Lucroy MIL

Derek Norris SD

Austin Hedges SD

Gary Sanchez? NYY

Cervelli PIT

Jason Castro HOU

Matt Weiters BAL

Kevin Pawlecki NYM - Or maybe even better and it's d'Arnaud instead.

Mike Zunino SEA

 

So basically, trading for Lucroy before the season isn't really interesting to me.

Lucroy has something like a $5 million team option next year. He isn't gonna be a FA

[Sammy Sofa]

We have Miguel Montero AND Kyle Schwarber and we are talking about catchers?

 

Montero will be 33 this year and Schwarber is an emergency catcher.

[David]

We have Miguel Montero AND Kyle Schwarber and we are talking about catchers?

 

Montero will be 33 this year and Schwarber is an emergency catcher.

 

And Willson Contreras?

 

And Lucroy will be 30 this year. Not saying I'd be opposed to acquiring him at the right price (which it probably wouldn't be), but catching isn't really a concern in the short or long term.

[Sammy Sofa]

We have Miguel Montero AND Kyle Schwarber and we are talking about catchers?

 

Montero will be 33 this year and Schwarber is an emergency catcher.

 

And Willson Contreras?

 

And Lucroy will be 30 this year. Not saying I'd be opposed to acquiring him at the right price (which it probably wouldn't be), but catching isn't really a concern in the short or long term.

 

Nowhere did I say I wanted Lucroy; the guy was incredulous over the idea that anyone would be talking about the general idea of the Cubs picking up a new catcher and I provided a couple of reasons why they might do such a thing.

[David]

 

Montero will be 33 this year and Schwarber is an emergency catcher.

 

And Willson Contreras?

 

And Lucroy will be 30 this year. Not saying I'd be opposed to acquiring him at the right price (which it probably wouldn't be), but catching isn't really a concern in the short or long term.

 

Nowhere did I say I wanted Lucroy or Contreras; the guy was incredulous over the idea that anyone would be talking about the general idea of the Cubs picking up a new catcher and I provided a couple of reasons why they might do such a thing.

 

Not letting you get away with editing out where you proved you had no idea who the Cubs 1st or 2nd best prospect is. Nope.

[Sammy Sofa]

Oh no, I am ruined. Whatever will I do.

[Clem Fandango]

I'll play devil's advocate even though I'm 100% content with Montero at catcher for this year and next year if need be and recognize we don't NEED Lucroy, but also because I'm bored and have nothing else to do at this moment in time and I feel like talking about baseball...

 

--------------------Start Devil's Advocate--------------------

 

By all accounts it seems like Contreras needs another season in the minors to work on his catching abilities. Montero himself is a possible trade candidate in the upcoming offseason depending on Contreras' progress. The current catching hierarchy is:

 

Montero

Ross

Schwarber

 

They're obviously going to work Schwarber into an everyday LF role and he'll probably be phased out of a catching role by season's end one would assume. So next year it's looking like:

 

Montero

Contreras

Schwarber (emergencies only)

 

Contreras could very well flounder at AAA this season and prove he still needs time to develop his defensive prowess. We lose Ross (for better or worse) as the backup, and Schwarber probably won't be groomed as a catcher anymore by 2017. So our tentative 2017 depth chart is what it is above, but there's no guarantee Contreras or Schwarber will be proper candidates to catch behind Montero. And given Montero is getting older and has never played more than 141 games in a single season and has a history of nagging injuries, he's not the ideal candidate to be your rock behind the plate if you have weak backup options.

 

If Lucroy can bounce back to just his 2013 or 2012 self, he'd be more valuable than Montero at a fraction of the cost. Lucroy was one of the best framers in the game before his shortened season last year (#5 in 2012, #1 in 2013, #3 in 2014), so we wouldn't be missing Montero's defense if he were traded away. Lucroy has a better bat, is younger, has arguably better defense, is substantially cheaper, and can be had for the same amount of time as Montero.

 

The big hangup is Lucroy's health after last season and if you trust him to be 100%. If he's back to 100% I'd much rather have him on the roster than Montero, not that I don't love having Miggy on the roster. And Lucroy, at 100%, is a workhorse. He played 147 and 153 games behind the plate in 2013 and 2014 respectively. Most games Miggy has played in a single season is 141. Montero has 16.1 fWAR over his career since 2006. Lucroy has 16.2 since 2010. And that doesn't account for pitch framing abilities which Lucroy is arguably better than Montero at.

 

Not only that, if Contreras shines and he's ready for MLB action come 2017 and you want to move your starting catcher to make room for him, who will bring back more value in a trade next offseason? The 33 year old Montero at $14 million a year or the 30 year old Lucroy at $5.25 million who, fingers crossed, just bounced back to his 2013/2014 form?

 

Aside from his health the only concern is how much it would cost to get him being in the same division. if they ask for the moon (Soler, Baez, Torres, Happ, etc.) then obviously you pass because you're fine the way you are. But if he could be had for something like McKinney, Edwards, and Johnson or something to that effect, give or take another mid tier prospect... I'd do that and not think twice. Lucroy has 5+ WAR potential, but you can comfortably pen him in for 3-4 fWAR if he's healthy. That only makes this team better.

 

-------------------- End Devil's Advocate--------------------

 

I'm fine without Lucroy, and he'd probably cost a lot to acquire. I like Miggy and what he brings to the Cubs, even if he is more expensive. Great clubhouse guy, excellent defensive catcher, not a black hole at the plate (looking at you, Ross), and a great vet to have on the team to mentor the youth. The rest of the lineup is so stout that you can live with whatever shortcomings you get at the catcher position, which isn't terrible, so... yeah.