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Jonathan Lucroy, free agent catcher and Texas Rangers fan favorite, has agreed to a one year, $3.35M deal with the Anaheim Angels, per Jeff Passan. The deal reportedly has incentives that could make it worth up to $4 million.
Lucroy was considered one of the best catchers in baseball heading into the 2017 season, but a disastrous first half with Texas that year led to him being traded to Colorado in July. He signed with the A’s for the 2018 season, and put up an abysmal .241/.291/.325 slash line, with defensive metrics so poor that he ended up with a -0.7 bWAR.
Lucroy’s precipitous decline has been baffling, as he went from one of the best pitch-framers in baseball to one of the worst over the past two seasons, as well as seeing his offense crater. However, his reputation for working with pitchers is strong enough that he got a guaranteed deal with the Angels for 2019.