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ALEX SPEIER

The Red Sox and the Jonathan Lucroy question

Jonathan Lucroy is under team contractual control on a relative bargain deal through 2017. Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

Who will be the Red Sox’ Opening Day catcher in 2017?

The answer to that question for most evaluators starts with, “Ummmm . . .” which in turn explains why the mention by Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com that the Red Sox are among the teams “in the mix” for Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy is so intriguing.

Disclaimer: One major league source said earlier this week that the Sox’ focus with the approaching trade deadline has been on pitching. The source also said he hadn’t heard the team connected to Lucroy, with all indications pointing to the team remaining willing to ride the Sandy Leon wave as long as possible. (Leon is now 3-for-16 in a recent five-game mini-slump to drop his line to .388/.435/.635).

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Still, it’s hard not to find the idea of Lucroy to be one of the more intriguing ones, especially if the Sox could simultaneously acquire late-innings bullpen help from the Brewers. Lefthander Will Smith represents the most obvious Brewers bullpen option, but he has reverse splits this year, with lefties hitting .303 against him. Righthander Tyler Thornburg, on the other hand, has been a monster against lefties, holding them to a .127/.214/.190 line while striking out an outrageous 46 percent of lefties he’s faced.

Ben Lindbergh of The Ringer recently articulated the case for Lucroy as the top prize of this year’s trade deadline.

The 30-year-old, who is under team contractual control on a relative bargain deal through 2017, is hitting .300/.361/.486 with 13 homers. He’s long been viewed as an above-average to elite pitch-framer. He has been roughly as effective as Christian Vazquez as a pitch-framer this year, according to StatCorner.com, meaning he can bring a two-way impact.

Leon’s career track record means that his outrageous performance thus far is insufficient to alter the view of his expected contributions. Ryan Hanigan, a valued veteran presence, has had difficulties staying on the field. It remains unclear whether Blake Swihart will catch again this year as he continues his recovery from an ankle injury. His lost year of catching development time in 2016, in turn, clouds the picture of whether he could be a consideration to catch for the Sox next year.

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Vazquez, meanwhile, is still struggling as a hitter, posting a .200/.255/.300 line in 13 games since getting optioned to Triple A Pawtucket.

In both 2009 and 2010, the Red Sox got a jumpstart on their catching situation through deadline trades, first by landing Victor Martinez on July 31, 2009, then by trading for Jarrod Saltalamacchia on July 31, 2010.

“There’s a lot of trades that happen that go under the radar that in the future do help a lot. It’s not necessarily a blockbuster trade. It can be a small trade like mine,” said Saltalamacchia. “It put me in a good place and I was able to help the team out.”

Lucroy would represent something closer to a blockbuster deal, presumably with either Vazquez or Swihart having to be in the mix along with an additional pieces. But it’s worth noting that the Sox, according to multiple major league sources, explored the possibility of trading for Lucroy as recently as last year — prior to Dave Dombrowski’s arrival as Red Sox president of baseball operations — underscoring the sense of uncertainty that looms behind the plate for the Sox going forward. And while the Sox have yet to give any signals that they are looking at catchers this year, there is curiosity from major league sources outside the organization about whether the Sox will move to address a position of perceived need.

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■ Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports looked at the Lucroy market — but didn’t mention the Red Sox as a potential suitor.

■ Peter Gammons writes that the Red Sox have declared four prospects — Yoan Moncada, Andrew Benintendi, Michael Kopech, and Rafael Devers — off limits in trade talks.

■ Nick Cafardo writes that the White Sox likely would need Eduardo Rodriguez to be included in a theoretical Red Sox package for lefthander Chris Sale.