The Texas Rangers are expressing interest in Milwaukee Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
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The Rangers are reportedly far from alone in being interested in the All-Star catcher, but the interest makes sense. The club is currently set to deploy Robinson Chirinos and Chris Gimenez behind the plate, and would receive a boost offensively by adding Lucroy’s bat into the lineup.
The question is, however, whether Texas could meet Milwaukee’s asking price for their star catcher. David Stearns would reportedly have to be blown away to deal Lucroy, and at least one of Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara (probably along with Chi Chi Gonzalez and another prospect or two) would likely be going back to the Brewers in any deal.
There doesn’t sound to be any traction on a Lucroy trade at the moment, and Stearns sounds much less willing to move the 29-year-old than previous media reports have led on. That being said, Stearns comes from a front office in Houston that was committed to rebuilding the right way, so he probably wouldn’t be trigger shy if an offer with the right combination of young talent came his way.
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The Rangers, meanwhile, will likely look to add a right-handed outfield bat this week in Nashville to compliment Josh Hamilton in left field. They’ll also deal with trade rumors surrounding Elvis Andrus, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see trade buzz start around Mitch Moreland and Prince Fielder in the coming days, either.