On Wednesday morning, Lance McCullers Jr. accepted a trade to the Milwaukee Brewers, ending his 14-year association with a Houston Astros franchise that witnessed him blossom from a precocious prospect to a pillar of its golden era.Houston chose McCullers 41st in the 2012 MLB Draft and developed him into a potential foundational piece of its future starting rotations. Giving him a five-year, $85 million contract extension in 2021 signaled how highly Houston thought of the man who once told the team’s fanbase to “Bury me in the H.”A bevy of injuries interrupted McCullers’ plan. He had Tommy John surgery in 2018 and flexor tendon repair in 2023 and has thrown just 94 2/3 innings since the end of 2022.Still, in a phone conversation with The Athletic on Wednesday afternoon, McCullers acknowledged he “didn’t want to ever wear another team’s uniform.” He chose to do so only after calls with owner Jim Crane and on account of a reluctance to thwart any of the Astros’ intentions.Moving McCullers gave the Astros financial flexibility before the trade deadline and eliminated what could have been some uncomfortable conversations once the second half of the season began Friday.McCullers, who is on the injured list with a shoulder issue, spoke to The Athletic about his decision-making, his health and his legacy in Houston. Questions and answers have been edited slightly for clarity.The Astros drafted and developed Lance McCullers Jr. (Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)Lance, what has today been like for you?It’s been a little bit of a whirlwind. Happy, sad, excited, kind of all the emotions. I’ve been here a long time. I’ve been part of this organization since I was 18 years old. I got to accomplish a lot of amazing things and be a part of a lot of amazing things here. That chapter of my life and career is closing, but I’ll forever be grateful that I got to experience (it) and be a part of those. I’m also excited that I have a new opportunity in front of me with the Brewers, and I think this is a day that we can look back on and potentially say, “Hey, this was a sad day, but it was still with a lot of excitement and it led to a lot of great new relationships and a lot of great new moments.”You had some authority here with 10-and-5 rights. Was it a difficult decision for you to waive your no-trade clause?Because McCullers has 10 years of major-league service time and spent at least five consecutive years with one team, he is afforded the opportunity to veto any potential trade.Of course. I didn’t want to ever wear another team’s uniform. Like I said, I got drafted here. This organization took a chance on me when I was an 18-year-old kid. This has been my home ever since. My daughters were born here. This is where my wife and I will live forever. I never thought about playing somewhere else or being somewhere else, but I think all things, obviously, have to come to an end. I spoke to Jim Crane on Monday and we both thought — he thought — that this was going to be a good opportunity for me and that it would leave the Astros in a good situation leading up to the deadline and for the rest of the year. For me, even though I knew I was going to be leaving potentially, I didn’t want it to be a situation where me kind of being selfish, per se, was going to hold the organization back. I love the organization. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Crane. And out of that love and respect, I told him on the phone that I would waive it. Didn’t tell him where I needed to go or anything like that. Just told him that if he felt like this was what was best for the organization and also myself that I would waive it and try to, on my way out, leave the Astros in the best situation they could (be in) for their goals this year as well.Just to be clear: Did Jim call you, or did you call Jim?Jim called me.Lance McCullers Jr. said he spoke with Astros owner Jim Crane on Monday. (Erik Williams / Imagn Images)OK. And at that point, did he tell you that there was a trade with the Brewers in place or was he just asking if you would be willing to waive your no-trade clause?We were just kind of talking, more so, just kind of, talking about the rest of the year and the team’s goals and what my role would (be) or what it could potentially look like. He had mentioned that there was some interest from some clubs. We had follow-up conversations after that, and he told me it was the Brewers. Obviously (I) spoke to my family and called around to some guys that used to play there, including Josh Hader and some of those guys. They all had amazing things to say about it. Felt like it was the right thing to do. The organization felt good about the trade. Like I said, I feel like it’s a new, clean, fresh start for me with an organization that has a really good team and is obviously aspiring to go win a World Series, and it also leaves the organization here with some flexibility and potentially a player for the future.