On the eve of the 2017 non-waiver trade deadline, the Colorado Rockies acquired catcher Jonathan Lucroy from the Texas Rangers in exchange for a player to be named later. Lucroy was one of the most sought-after players before last year’s deadline when he was a member of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Texas at the time traded two promising prospects for Lucroy, who prior to that blocked a trade to the Cleveland Indians. Lucroy wound up helping the Rangers to an American League West title but they were eliminated in the AL Division Series by the Toronto Blue Jays.
Lucroy to this point has not been able to replicate his success from 2016. Over 77 games he batted .242/.297/.338 with four home runs and 27 RBIs.
Lucroy’s .635 on-base plus slugging percentage is his worst mark since his rookie season with the Brewers in 2010. Although Lucroy is in the midst of a down season, the Rockies fill a need by acquiring an everyday catcher.
Colorado previously moved to upgrade their roster by trading for Pat Neshek, who was an All-Star with the Philadelphia Phillies this season. The Los Angeles Dodgers were among the teams connected to Nesheck.
Lucroy goes from a Rangers team that slipped out of the playoff picture to the Rockies who are in the thick of a Wild Card race. They are working to finish ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks, who lost a key contributor in Chris Owings as hit by a pitch resulted in a fractured middle finger.
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