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Kyle Lohse

Kyle Lohse Likely To Retire

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May 11, 8:10am: Lohse tells Tony Boone of the Omaha World-Herald that this is “probably it” for his career, though he left the door open slightly in the event that a team approached him with an opportunity (Twitter link). It doesn’t sound as though agent Scott Boras will be actively pursuing new opportunities for his client, though.

May 10, 11:25pm: Shortly after being released by the Royals this afternoon, veteran right-hander Kyle Lohse took to Instagram to suggest that he is retiring from baseball after spending parts of 16 seasons in the Majors.

“It’s been a hell of a ride,” Lohse wrote with a view from the stands at a minor league game. “Baseball, you’ve taken me a lot of places I’ve never thought or even dreamed of. The highs. The lows. The people I’ve met. The teammates I’ve had the pleasure of battling alongside. The guys on the other teams I’ve had the pleasure of battling against. Time to take it to the house knowing I gave it all I had each and every time.”

Lohse made a comeback bid with the Royals this year after not pitching professionally in 2017, signing a minor league contract on March 31 but ultimately being knocked around in a pair of Triple-A starts. That, apparently, was enough to set the 39-year-old’s mind at east as he rides off into the sunset following a long and successful playing career.

Originally a 29th-round pick of the Cubs in 1996, Lohse was never considered to be an elite prospect. He went from the Cubs organization to the Twins by way of 1999’s Rick Aguilera trade and found himself in the big leagues for an up-and-coming Twins team a couple years later in 2001. Lohse’s rookie campaign was hardly noteworthy (5.68 ERA in 90 1/3 innings), but he settled in as a durable workhorse for the Twins the following season.

From 2002-05, Lohse averaged 32 starts and 189 innings per season, pitching to a 4.61 ERA with 5.4 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9. That, of course, was a markedly different era of baseball, as evidenced by the fact that Lohse’s collective 4.61 ERA in those 754 1/3 innings translated to an ERA+ of 99 — meaning he was roughly a league-average starter for the Twins in a heightened offensive period for baseball.

Lohse was eventually flipped to the Reds in 2006 and would spent parts of the next two seasons in Cincinnati and Philadelphia before setting into the Cardinals’ rotation for half a decade. Lohse enjoyed some of his best seasons in St. Louis, including a 2011 season that saw him post a 3.39 ERA in 30 starts for the World Champion Cardinals and a 2012 season in which he posted a career-best 2.86 ERA in 211 innings. Lohse started the NL Wild Card game for the Cards in 2012 and took home the win in that game, setting up St. Louis for another run to the NLCS. In all, he posted a 3.90 ERA in 809 innings for the chief rival of the club which originally drafted and traded him.

Following his strong run with the Cards, Lohse inked a three-year, $33MM deal with the Brewers, remaining in the NL Central and again serving as a thorn in the side to two former organizations — at least for the first two years of his deal. Lohse signed late in Spring Training in 2013 but proved to be well worth the investment when he tossed 397 innings of 3.45 ERA ball for the Brewers in the first two seasons of his deal. He stumbled in the final season of that contract, however, losing his rotation spot and finishing the year in a bullpen as he limped to the finish line with a 5.85 ERA. Lohse threw just 9 1/3 innings in the Majors after that point — all coming with the 2016 Rangers.

Lohse never made an All-Star team and only received Cy Young votes once in his career — a seventh-place finish in 2012 — but will still go down as one of the best 29th-round picks in history (even if Ken Griffey Sr. can probably lay claim to the top spot). Few players selected that late in the draft approach the type of career that Lohse had. At a point in the draft when most players selected are organizational filler, he forged a 16-year playing career that saw him post a 147-143 record with a 4.40 ERA, 1615 strikeouts, 12 complete games and even nine shutouts over the life of 2531 2/3 Major League innings. Lohse earned more than $89MM in a career that was valued by Baseball-Reference at 19.6 wins above replacement and at 26.3 wins above replacement by Fangraphs. Best of luck to Lohse in his post-playing days.

Royals Release Kyle Lohse

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The Royals have released veteran right-hander Kyle Lohse, tweets Rustin Dodd of The Athletic. He’d been pitching with Kansas City’s Triple-A affiliate in Omaha after signing a minor league deal back in March.

Lohse, 39, didn’t pitch in the Majors or minors in 2017 and only notched 9 1/3 big league innings in the 2016 season (all coming with the Rangers). He’d had a rough time adjusting to pro ball again to this point in the 2018 season, yielding a dozen runs on 17 hits and five walks with five strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings with the Storm Chasers (12.46 ERA).

Lohse was a workhorse for the Twins, Cardinals and Brewers at various points in his career, though he hasn’t experienced much in the way of success at the big league level since posting a strong 3.54 ERA in 198 1/3 innings with the Brew Crew back in 2014. Lohse struggled in 2015, the final season of a three-year $33MM deal with Milwaukee, losing his rotation spot and being shifted to the bullpen late in a season that saw him post a 5.85 earned run average (albeit with a slightly more encouraging 4.40 xFIP).

It’s possible, of course, that he’ll look to latch on elsewhere in a continued pursuit of returning to the Majors as his 40th birthday approaches, though he’ll have a ways to go before convincing a team that he’s capable of pitching in the Majors again.

Royals Sign Kyle Lohse To Minor-League Deal

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2:58pm: FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets that Lohse stands to make $800K if he makes the club’s MLB roster, with $700K in incentives also available.

9:04am: The Royals have announced the signing of right-hander Kyle Lohse to a minors deal. Lohse hasn’t pitched at the big-league level since 2016.

Signing the 39-year-old Lohse even to a minors pact represents something of a desperation move for the pitching-thin Royals, who currently have Eric Skoglund penciled in as their fifth starter and watched Danny Duffy struggle mightily on opening day. While Lohse did make two starts for the Rangers in 2016, he struck out just three batters in 9 1/3 innings and allowed 13 earned runs en route to being designated for assignment in late July. Prior to that, Lohse’s last full season in the majors came with the Brewers in 2015, when he pitched 152 1/3 innings of 5.85 ERA baseball.

Still, Lohse will seemingly the the club’s second-best reserve option at Triple-A behind Clay Buchholz; those two are the only other starters in the Royals organization beyond the team’s starting five who have any significant MLB experience to speak of. Other starters on the club’s 40-man roster include Heath Fillmyer (acquired in an offseason trade with the Athletics), along with Scott Barlow, Miguel Almonte and Trevor Oaks. Bearing this in mind, there’s a very real chance that Lohse could crack the roster at some point this season.

Heyman’s Latest: Wieters, Carter, Hammel, Padres, Francoeur

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Agent Scott Boras predicted earlier this winter that Matt Wieters would be a January signee, but the clock is running out even on that rather cautious timeline, FanRag’s Jon Heyman writes in his latest notes column. The Nationals and Angels remain the two likeliest landing spots, Heyman adds, though the Washington Post and other D.C. media outlets have continually downplayed the possibility. Boras is said to have recently met with the Angels, he also reports, and the Halos do indeed seem like an on-paper fit with Martin Maldonado penciled in as the presumptive starter at this time.

A few more items of interest…

  • The Rangers and Rays are both still in the mix for slugger Chris Carter, though Tampa Bay is looking for a “steep bargain” in its search for a hitter, and the Rangers are still in contact with Mike Napoli’s camp. (Talks there look to have cooled as of late, though Heyman notes that Texas is still Napoli’s most logical landing spot.) Both teams are offering low base salaries, and an incentive-laden deal could be a compromise to further advance talks.
  • The Mariners were talking with Jason Hammel before acquiring Yovani Gallardo and Drew Smyly in separate trades with the Orioles and Rays, respectively. Seattle doesn’t seem like a great fit for Hammel following those two additions, and what many expected to be a robust market for his services has proven to be tepid at best. Hammel switched agents late last month (after those talks took place) and is now represented by ACES.
  • The Padres offered Jered Weaver more than the $1.75MM that they guaranteed to each of Jhoulys Chacin, Trevor Cahill and Clayton Richard, but whatever sum they offered didn’t get the job done. San Diego still “clearly” is looking for someone to lead an uncertain rotation, though, Heyman writes. As it stands, the starting five for manager Andy Green will be a competition between Richard, Cahill, Chacin, Luis Perdomo, Christian Friedrich, Paul Clemens, Tyrell Jenkins and Cesar Vargas. Jake Peavy would still love to land back in San Diego, per Heyman, though he “may be further down [the Padres’] list.”
  • Right-hander Kyle Lohse isn’t giving up on the idea of pitching again in 2017. The 38-year-old pitched just 9 1/3 innings in two starts with Texas last season, allowing 13 earned runs in that time. He also struggled in Triple-A, recording a 5.06 ERA in 58 2/3 innings. Lohse was effective as recently as 2014 and had a quietly excellent stretch from 2011-14, but he’s struggled in consecutive seasons now. He could still fit somewhere as a non-roster invite and bring plenty of insight to some young pitchers in Spring Training, but he’s a long shot to break camp with a big league team.
  • The Marlins and Braves are both talking to Jeff Francoeur about a potential reunion, Heyman tweets. “Frenchy” split the 2016 season between Atlanta and Miami, batting a combined .254/.297/.378 with seven home runs. It’s been five years since Francoeur turned in an OBP north of .300, but he’s consistently valued by big league teams for his leadership and clubhouse presence. If the Marlins believe him to be capable of playing some first base, he could pair with Justin Bour as a platoon partner. While that’s just speculation on my behalf, Francoeur is a career .279/.328/.449 hitter against lefties and batted .271/.313/.414 in 133 PAs against southpaws last season.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/1/16

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Let’s catch up on a few recent minor moves:

  • Kyle Lohse is back on the free agent market after refusing an outright assignment with the Rangers, per a team announcement. Lohse, 37, did not look good in his two outings for Texas, and was also struggling at Triple-A — albeit not nearly to the same extent — before his promotion. He nevertheless remains a plausible depth addition for teams needing innings over the next few months.
  • Recently claimed and then designated infielder Matt Duffy has been outrighted to Triple-A by the Rangers, the club also announced. The 27-year-old has had a rough year at the Triple-A level, posting a cumulative .222/.299/.344 slash over 301 plate appearances with the Rangers’ and Astros’ top affiliates.
  • The Marlins released veteran righty Jeremy Guthrie in the wake of its pitching overhaul, as the club’s Triple-A broadcaster, Tim Grubbs, reports in a tweet. Now 37 years of age, Guthrie has long provided plenty of innings to teams in need of them, but hasn’t seen the majors since he was cut loose by the Royals last year. He had caught on with Miami after opting out of his minor league deal with the Padres.
  • Utilityman Don Kelly has been outrighted by the Marlins, per a club announcement. The 36-year-old didn’t hit much in a limited sample in the majors this year, and owns only a .223/.288/.273 slash in his 153 Triple-A plate appearances on the season.
  • Joining the Tigers on a minor league deal is veteran lefty Cesar Ramos, the club announced. Ramos was just released by the Rangers. The 32-year-old put up a nice 2.75 ERA in 52 1/3 relief innings last year, but was touched for 32 earned runs in his 47 2/3 frames this season with Texas, posting 5.1 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 in four starts and a dozen relief appearances.
  • The Blue Jays recently released catcher Tony Sanchez, as Sportsnet.ca duo Ben Nicholson-Smith and Shi Davidi report. He lost his spot at the Triple-A level when the club signed Erik Kratz. Once considered a quality prospect with the Pirates, Sanchez has scuffled to a .201/.292/.309 batting line this year in 168 trips to the plate at Triple-A.
  • Meanwhile, the Blue Jays announced that outfielder Junior Lake has been outrighted to Triple-A. Lake has seen action in each of the last four major league campaigns, putting up a .236/.279/.377 overall batting line in 702 plate appearances. He was producing right at that rate during his limited time in Toronto.

Rangers Designate Kyle Lohse For Assignment

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The Rangers announced today that they’ve designated veteran right-hander Kyle Lohse for assignment and recalled right-hander Nick Martinez from Triple-A Round Rock to make tonight’s start.

[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]

The 37-year-old Lohse made just two starts for the Rangers after signing a minor league deal, surrendering 13 runs on 15 hits and five walks with three strikeouts in 9 1/3 innings against the Twins and Angels. His minor league deal came with a base salary of $2MM, so he’ll receive the pro-rated version of that for his work with Texas, amounting to about $951K.

Lohse struggled not only in his brief big league stint but also at Triple-A this season, where he posted a 5.06 ERA in 10 starts with Round Rock. Lohse’s 6.3 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 36.2 percent ground-ball rate. Lohse was quite effective into his mid-30s, logging a 3.28 ERA over four seasons from 2011-14 as a member of the Cardinals and Brewers, but he hit a wall in 2015 — the final season of a three-year, $33MM pact with Milwaukee — and limped to a 5.85 ERA in 152 1/3 innings of work. The Rangers could try to outright him to Triple-A to keep him in the organization for depth purposes, though the well-seasoned veteran has the service time to reject and retain the remainder of his salary while searching for an opportunity elsewhere.

Rangers To Purchase Contract Of Kyle Lohse

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The Rangers have announced that they’ll purchase the contract of Kyle Lohse in time for him to start tomorrow’s ballgame. Righty Nick Martinez has been optioned to open an active roster spot.

[Related: Updated Rangers Depth Chart]

Lohse, 37, joined the Texas organization on a minor league deal earlier in the season and has been working at the Triple-A level. Over 58 2/3 innings through ten starts, he has put up a rather unsightly 5.06 ERA, though a 61.4% strand rate isn’t doing him any favors.

While Lohse’s minor league performance doesn’t inspire a ton of confidence, the Rangers are in need of rotation arms and will see what he has left in the tank. And there’s at least some reason to hope that the veteran can deliver useful innings for a big league staff.

Across his 15 MLB campaigns, Lohse owns a 4.37 ERA with 5.8 K/9 against 2.5 BB/9. His earned run average ballooned to 5.85 last year, but that broke a string of four consecutive years in which Lohse’s ERA never drifted above the mid-3’s. Beyond that, the underlying peripherals looked much the same as ever and Lohse was still working at his customary ~89 mph level with the fastball.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Gurriel, Erasmo, D-Backs, Royals, Lohse, Taylor

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In his latest notes column, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports looks at the developing market for Cuban star Yulieski Gurriel. Discussing his team’s reported interest, Giants GM Bobby Evans tells Rosenthal that he is primarily looking to “be as thorough as we can when it comes to international talent,” not angling to replace a starter in the infield. In Rosenthal’s opinion, Gurriel fits best with the Mets, who could use him at third this year and then utilize him there or at second in the seasons beyond, depending upon how things shake out. Needless to say, Gurriel figures to be a fascinating player to watch over the coming weeks.

Here are some more highlights from the post:

  • The Dodgers have engaged the Rays in talks regarding righty Erasmo Ramirez, according to Rosenthal. Though he’s working out of the pen for Tampa Bay, the Dodgers would intend to utilize Ramirez in the rotation — at least initially. He has spent most of his career as a starter, and presumably would offer the club a swingman/long-relief option down the line. With several youthful and recently-injured starters in the picture in L.A., it’s not hard to see the match.
  • Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart says that the organization is getting trade interest in both Brad Ziegler and Daniel Hudson, with some teams even asking about landing both arms. However, Arizona is not yet ready to concede the 2016 campaign, particularly after improved play of late. Stewart also suggested again that the club would rather extend both of the late-inning righties, each of whom is a pending free agent, rather than shipping them out.
  • Despite their position-player gaps — most of which are being filled with surprising aplomb by unheralded players — the Royals’ biggest need is starting pitching, Rosenthal argues. GM Dayton Moore says that the club is “not overly concerned” about third base or right field, which are currently manned by Cheslor Cuthbert and Paulo Orlando. “If we had to make a decision today, we’d probably go with what we’ve got,” he said. But the architect of the reigning World Series champs also noted that the starting pitching market isn’t showing the same kind of top-quality veterans that it did last year, making it a “challenge” to find a real upgrade for the staff.
  • Speaking of that thin market, Rosenthal says that teams are not unaware of the fact that Kyle Lohse can still opt out of his his deal with the Rangers after recently being bypassed for a promotion. Though the veteran owns only a 5.23 ERA in 51 2/3 Triple-A innings on the year, he is sitting at a typical 6.1 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 and obviously comes with a lengthy track record of quality major league pitching. (Note: it’s unclear precisely what opt-out situation Lohse has; the deal included a June 1 date that has obviously already passed, but may allow him to force the Rangers’ hand if another team offers a big league opportunity.)
  • Rosenthal says that the Nationals have previously discussed center fielder Michael Taylor in trade talks and suggests they could do so again this summer in search of a top relief arm. Taylor would certainly make for an interesting piece to dangle: he still possesses tantalizing tools despite his difficulties in harnessing the strike zone and only just turned 25.

AL West Notes: Lincecum, Valencia, Lohse, Mariners

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Tim Lincecum is set to debut for the Angels tomorrow against the Athletics, as MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez writes. Per Gonzalez, the Angels felt that Lincecum might’ve been ready for his debut after his second rehab outing, but the pitcher himself asked GM Billy Eppler for one more rehab tune-up because he wasn’t pleased with his ability to command his fastball in that second outing. His third outing proved to be the best of the bunch, as he went seven innings and picked up eight strikeouts while yielding just one hit and one walk. His velocity is still in the 88-91 mph range, Gonzalez notes, but Eppler says that he expects Lincecum will be able to locate his fastball and secondary pitches to get by “with moxie and some deception and pitchability.” Lincecum appears set to join Jered Weaver, Hector Santiago, Jhoulys Chacin and Matt Shoemaker in the Halos’ rotation, as is reflected on their updated depth chart.

More from the American League West…

  • Danny Valencia feels like he’s found a home with the Athletics — his sixth team in four years — but he knows there’s a possibility that he could again be traded this summer, he tells USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. “We all joke about it,” said Valencia, who is hitting .302/.353/.529 with 28 homers dating back to the start of the 2015 season. “They are notorious for making trades, so it’s in the back of everybody’s mind. If the team’s not in the thick of things, they will make moves and blow up the team to some degree. I know I don’t want to go anywhere. I love Oakland. I love the Bay Area. I love my coaching staff, my teammates. We all love it here.” Valencia acknowledged that the team’s poor play decreases the likelihood of him remaining there, however, and Nightengale speculates that he could be a strong fit for the Mets, who recently lost David Wright to neck surgery. Valencia’s clubhouse personality has drawn some negative reviews in the past, though teammate Yonder Alonso spoke to Nightengale about that perception, opining that Valencia is the type of player that is loved by his own team but rubs opponents the wrong way. “He’s a guy that if you’re not his team, you may not like him, and you want to beat him,” said Alonso. “If he’s on your team, you want this guy playing every single night, helping you win. And if you’re in a fight, you want him right next to you.”
  • The Rangers are “seriously” considering bringing veteran righty Kyle Lohse up to serve as a bullpen option, though their current roster construction make the situation a bit complicated, tweets Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. Lohse, 37, inked a minor league pact with Texas last month and has been starting for the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Round Rock. Lohse’s numbers leave plenty to be desired — he has a 5.35 ERA through six starts, though the bulk of the damage came in one start — but he could add some length to the bullpen or provide the team with some spot starts if necessary.
  • While the Mariners’ bullpen has stumbled lately, general manager Jerry Dipoto tells Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune that he’s not planning on making an early splash on the trade market to address his relief corps. “It’s not a great time to do trades really,” said Dipoto, “but we are doing our recon, like we always do, as we prepare for July. Right now, this is our group.” Per Dutton, if the Mariners do look to upgrade their ’pen next month, it would likely be by pursuing someone that can pitch at the very back of the group, but the market isn’t exactly rife with shutdown options for the ninth inning. MLBTR’s Jeff Todd recently listed the top trade candidates from around the game and did include a fair number of relief options, though certainly not all of them are the types that the Mariners (or another club) would immediately slot into the closer’s role.

Rangers Sign Kyle Lohse To Minor League Deal

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SATURDAY: The signing is now official, tweets Rangers executive vice president of communications John Blake. Lohse will join Triple-A Round Rock on Sunday.

FRIDAY, 12:26pm: Lohse indeed agreed to a minor league contract, tweets Sherman. He can opt out of the deal on June 1, tweets Heyman.

12:08pm: The Rangers and veteran right-hander Kyle Lohse have agreed to terms on a deal, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. While Heyman doesn’t specifically state whether the contract is of the Major League or minor league variety, he’d tweeted earlier this morning that Texas was interested in a minor league deal with Lohse. Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that Lohse will receive a $2MM base salary and up to $1.5MM worth of incentives on the deal.

Lohse, 37, was said to have worked out for clubs last week. The Scott Boras client is coming off arguably the worst season of his career, having pitched to a 5.85 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 152 1/3 innings in the final season of a three-year, $33MM pact with the Brewers. However, Lohse’s velocity, strikeout rate, ground-ball rate and control were all fairly consistent with his numbers from previous seasons. Lohse did experience a dramatic spike in his homer-to-flyball ratio, however, and his strand rate and BABIP each trended in the wrong direction as we well. Those red flags notwithstanding, Lohse topped 198 innings in both 2013 and 2014, pitching to a combined 3.45 ERA in that time, so there’s reason to believe that he can still contribute some productive innings at the big league level once he gets up to speed.

The Rangers recently lost right-hander A.J. Griffin to the disabled list due to a shoulder injury, and it’s yet unclear how much time he’ll require on the shelf. Their rotation presently consists of Cole Hamels, Derek Holland, Martin Perez and Colby Lewis, although Holland has struggled quite a bit this season and Perez’s innings could be monitored by the team after he threw just 104 1/3 combined innings between Double-A, Triple-A and the Majors last season in a return from Tommy John surgery. Texas also has ace Yu Darvish on the mend from his own Tommy John surgery, and he could return to action late this month or in early June, as he’s on a minor league rehab assignment right now.

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