The six-year, $100 million deal Carlos Lee signed with the Houston Astros is due to expire at the conclusion of the 2012 season, but it remains a possibility that the team will attempt to unload him as the trade deadline nears. Normally an MLB veteran of 10 years and one with five years of experience with his current team (both of which are criteria Lee meets) has the right to block any trade.
As it turns out with Lee, that isn't entirely the case.
Find out more after the jump.
At the time of signing his contract, Lee bargained to sacrifice his full 10-and-5 status in exchange for a full no-trade clause for the first four years of his deal. In years five and six of the deal, Lee has only partial veto-power in a trade, as he was allowed to block 14 teams from being potential trade partners.
Those teams remain unclear, however. The Astros can continue to pursue a trade with any MLB team (assuming they do wish to unload Lee's contract), but the slugger would have the right to reject trades proposed to 14 teams that he designated as no-go destinations.
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