Lucroy makes right call nixing trade to Indians

Any reasonable person in Jonathan Lucroy’s position would have done exactly what he did, which was to decline a trade to the Cleveland Indians.

Yes, the Indians are in first place in the American League Central and Lucroy’s current employers, the Milwaukee Brewers, are in fourth place in the National League Central.

And yes, the proposed trade would have fit into both team’s current profiles. The Indians have been getting next to nothing offensively out of their catchers. Lucroy is hitting .299 with 13 home runs and an OPS of .841.

The Brewers are rebuilding and the Indians were offering a deal that would have included three of their top 30 prospects per MLBPipeline.com. Most prominent among those was catching prospect Francisco Mejia, ranked No. 4 among Cleveland prospects.

Cleveland was one of the clubs on Lucroy’s contractual no-trade list. He offered to waive the no-trade clause if the Indians met certain conditions. As confirmed by MLB.com, the Indians did not agree to any of the conditions, so Lucroy declined to waive the no-trade clause.

This was, for Lucroy, a matter of equity, long-term security and a rare opportunity for economic leverage.

Lucroy, 30, is playing under a remarkably club-friendly contract, signed before he emerged as an elite catcher. He is now a complete player; offensively, defensively, and as an astute handler of …

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