The Opt-Out Clause – The New No-Trade Clause?

The phrase “The deal includes a full no-trade clause” used to be one that would strike fear into the hearts of Cub fans everywhere during the Jim Hendry era, as it usually meant, at some point, the club would be stuck with an immovable, aging, and declining player commanding a rather large sum of money in the twilight of their contract (unless they were kind enough to waive their no-trade clause/10-and-5 rights). While players still receive no-trade clauses from the current front office–Jason Heyward, Jon Lester, and Ben Zobrist all have some form of no-trade provision in their contracts–the deals which contain them aren’t as onerous as they once were.

However, in recent years the new big…