Rangers' Jonathan Lucroy Rumored to Be a Trade Target for Rockies

The Colorado Rockies have reportedly started to pursue Texas Rangers catcher Jonathan Lucroy ahead of Monday's MLB non-waiver trade deadline.

On Thursday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the Rockies shifted their focus to Lucroy after acquiring relief pitcher Pat Neshek from the Philadelphia Phillies.

The 31-year-old backstop has endured the worst season of his professional career with a .245/.300/.342 triple-slash line to go along with just four home runs in 76 games for Texas. He smashed 24 homers while putting up a rock-solid .855 OPS between the Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers last year.

Trade speculation started to swirl earlier in July, and the Florida native said he tried to block out the noise so he could focus on his on-field performance, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News:

"This is the third time dealing with it. One time I wasn't traded and one time I was. And I knew it could be a possibility again if we didn't play well. Robinson [Chirinos] is playing really well. You realize you can become expendable. I'm not bothered by it. Actually, I don't think about it. I've been pretty bad all season, and I know I'm a lot better than this. That's what I'm thinking about."

Those efforts have been unsuccessful so far. He's posted a .175 batting average with no home runs in 57 at-bats in July.

Meanwhile, Chirinos, 33, has made a bid for more consistent playing time down the stretch with an .849 OPS and 12 homers in 44 appearances this season.

The Rockies are one of the few teams that make sense for Lucroy. They have received just three home runs from the position all year—two from Ryan Hanigan and one from Dustin Garneau, according to ESPN.com. Tony Wolters has none in 65 games.

Getting more consistent production from their catchers could help the team earn a wild-card berth in the National League. The 58-45 Rockies currently lead the Brewers by four games for the second spot.