MLB trade rumors: Indians talking with Brewers about Jonathan Lucroy, report says

Tom Gatto

MLB trade rumors: Indians talking with Brewers about Jonathan Lucroy, report says image

THE RUMOR: The Brewers and Indians are discussing a trade centered on All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy.

REPORTED BY: Buster Olney, ESPN, on Twitter.

MORE: Worst in-season trade for each NL franchise

DETAILS: American League Central-leading Cleveland needs help on offense, in particular at catcher, even though team president Chris Antonetti said this week the position was not a high priority as the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline nears. Tribe receivers were last in the majors with a .518 OPS entering Wednesday's play. Starter Yan Gomes (separated shoulder) is on the disabled list and main backup Roberto Perez is just coming back from thumb surgery.

The Brewers have been looking for a long time for the right deal to move Lucroy, who has increased his value with a stellar all-around 2016 season. Milwaukee can play the Indians against, among other teams, the Rangers, who placed DH Prince Fielder (neck surgery) and outfielder Shin-Soo Choo (back) on the DL on Wednesday.

SPECTOR: Lucroy trade type of aggressive move Indians need to make

CURRENT STATS: Lucroy, 30, entered Wednesday's play with a .305/.362/.494 slash line, 12 home runs and 45 RBIs. His defense has been solid: Fangraphs lists him with 1 defensive run saves, sixth-best among qualifying catchers (Gomes is tied for third with 4 DRS). 

OUR TAKE: A deal would make a lot of sense for both sides. Lucroy would give a legit contender an obvious upgrade at a premium position, plus a year of control beyond 2016 (his contract includes a highly reasonable $5.25 million club option for 2017). The Indians' farm system is deep enough (seven players in Baseball America's midseason list of its top 100 prospects) to satisfy Milwaukee's desire for younger talent.

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.