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Brewers' Lucroy would 'absolutely' welcome trade to contender

Charles LeClaire / USA TODAY Sports

The 2016 campaign is going to be rough for the Milwaukee Brewers, and Jonathan Lucroy - one of the veterans expected to be moved to help the organization rebuild - knows it.

"I'm not going to sit here and say we're going to compete for the playoffs this year," Lucroy told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel on Tuesday. "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."

Though Lucroy, an All-Star in 2014, hasn't demanded a trade, he and the Brewers reportedly have mutual interest in parting ways. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Brewers have had dialogue with several teams about Lucroy, and the catcher - set to earn just $4 million in 2016 with a team-friendly option for the following campaign - would similarly welcome a trade to a contender.

"Yeah, absolutely. I want to win," he said. "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 (in June). 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 the Brewers want to move Lucroy this offseason, however, they might have to adjust their asking price, which, according Rosenthal, was too high for the Texas Rangers, Oakland Athletics, and Washington Nationals.

Even if he remains in Milwaukee for 2016, though, Lucroy isn't about to pout all summer.

"If I stay with the Brewers, I'm not going to go out and dog it," he said. "I'm not going to be a bad teammate. I'm not going to be a bad clubhouse guy. I'm not going to be bitter. It's just part of the game."

Limited to 103 games last year due to a toe injury and concussion problems, Lucroy hit just .264/.326/.391 with seven home runs. He'd averaged an .831 OPS with 14 homers and 32 doubles over the three seasons prior.

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