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Kyle Lohse

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Braves, Lohse, Pedro, Bay

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On this date 72 years ago, Lou Gehrig signed a one-year deal for $38K and a $750 signing bonus. This contract came on the heels of a season in which Gehrig hit .354-49-152 with a strikeout to walk ratio of 130-to-46 and a 190 OPS+. The following season, Gehrig would hit .351-37-159 (177 OPS+) in what would turn out to be his last full healthy season. With only a few weeks left until the ’09 regular season begins, let’s take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.

Odds and Ends: Lohse, Reyes, Greinke, Howard

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Links for Tuesday…

  • Chat today, 2pm CST.
  • Rangers president Nolan Ryan called the Winter Meetings "a big waste of money and time."
  • Nationals GM Jim Bowden implied that a Tom Glavine signing is unlikely.
  • Kyle Lohse feels the pain of all the unsigned free agents; he didn’t sign until March 14th last year.  Lohse said he "put a lot of pressure on all parties" to get his four-year, $41MM extension done on September 29th.  Given that it wasn’t on the open market, Scott Boras did well for Lohse.
  • The Dodgers prefer Dennys Reyes over Luis Ayala, says Ken Gurnick.
  • Joe Posnanski loves the Zack Greinke signing.  Sam Mellinger says the Royals and fans are no longer allowed to complain about baseball’s financial structure.
  • Maury Brown leans slightly toward Ryan Howard winning his arbitration case.  I think the Phillies will prevail.
  • Brandon Lyon turned down more lucrative offers for a chance to close in Detroit.  ESPN’s Keith Law likes the Tigers’ signing, in part due to Jim Leyland’s track record with relievers.
  • The Marlins seem to prefer the trade market, if they are to add a catcher.
  • Joe Nathan knows his $47MM extension signed in March of ’08 is looking pretty good right now.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Johnson, Peavy, Dempster

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Here’s a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

  • It doesn’t seem likely that Randy Johnson re-signs with the Diamondbacks, though Johnson is holding out filing for free agency until the possibility is exhausted.  The D’Backs hope he will take a significant hometown discount; they have roughly $10MM to spend for Johnson and a second baseman.  If a Mark Loretta type takes $2MM, will Johnson take $8MM after earning $15.1MM for a fine ’08 season?
  • The Braves are frustrated with the progress on the Jake Peavy talks, and will explore other options (especially once the free agent market opens Friday).  Rosenthal says the Padres sent revised proposals to the Cubs and Braves yesterday, but those teams intend to stick with their offers.  Will the Padres crack and make a deal before Friday?
  • Rosenthal criticizes the Padres for the classless farewell to Trevor Hoffman.  They pulled their reduced offer, and didn’t agree to the meeting with ownership he requested.
  • Suddenly there may be more solid free agent closers than teams seeking one.  The Mets have their pick.  To me this is a sign that K-Rod will fall short of five years, $75MM.
  • Rosenthal believes Kevin Gregg is next up on the trading block for the Marlins, with Jeremy Hermida another possibility.
  • Casey Blake doesn’t have any geographic leanings regarding his next destination.  His agent feels a three-year deal is reasonable.  The Twins and Indians are among seven teams eyeing Blake.
  • The Cubs offered Ryan Dempster something in the range of Kyle Lohse’s four years, $41MM.  Teams don’t like to use the Carlos Silva deal as a benchmark, because it was such a clear mistake.

Odds And Ends: Cardinals, Astros, K-Rod

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Links for Saturday…

  • It doesn’t sound like Jon Daniels has autonomy in Texas.
  • Ian Hunter of Country 103.9 in Ontario recently talked to MLBTR about the Blue Jays. Click here to download the mp3.
  • Reds GM Walt Jocketty has talked to three or four of the Reds’ nine free agents.  John Fay speculates those players are David Weathers, Jerry Hairston Jr., Mike Lincoln, and Jeremy Affeldt.
  • The Padres’ grievance against shortstop Khalil Greene won’t be heard until spring.  The case of Doyle Alexander may be a precedent; the Yankees were not able to recover any money after Alexander broke a knuckle by attacking a dugout wall in ’82.
  • Matthew Leach of MLB.com takes a look at the Redbirds’ upcoming offseason.  Leach estimates that after all the contract and arbitration items are settled, the Cards will have around $25MM to look for a middle infielder, a middle reliever, and perhaps a new closer or #4 or #5 type slugger.
  • Likewise, earlier this week Astros MLB.com beat writer Alyson Footer reported on GM Ed Wade’s offseason plans. Wade is expected to make some tweaks to the roster, but it’s unlikely he’ll make any major moves. Footer suggests the Astros could look for a couple of rotation arms, and speculates on the possibility of signing Ben Sheets.
  • The O.C. Register’s Mark Whicker doesn’t see Francisco Rodriguez coming back to the Angels.

Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com and can be reached here: alexo05 {at} umpbump {dot} com.  Tim Dierkes also contributed to this post.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Holliday, Teixeira, Mussina

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A look at what is being written around the Blogosphere…

  • MetsBlog recognizes that Francisco Rodriguez will improve the team and appease fans, but is not sure he is worth a four or five-year deal.
  • Mets Geek projects the Mets ’09 roster and looks at some options from outside the organization with Pat Burrell and Derek Lowe being the biggest offseason targets.
  • Was Watching says bringing back Brian Cashman was a mistake.
  • River Ave. Blues assesses the Matt Holliday market and feels that Phil Hughes and Robinson Cano for Holliday "doesn’t make much sense."
  • Sox and Pinstripes provides an in-depth preview of the upcoming offseasons for the Yankees and Red Sox and wonders if Theo Epstein can convince the Rockies to take J.D. Drew and a top prospect for Matt Holliday.
  • iYankees notes that Brian Cashman wants to make the Yankees’ OBP a priority this winter and feels Mark Teixeira fits the bill.
  • Oriole Post does not want to see Mike Mussina return to the O’s and would prefer they "stay the course" with young players.
  • C70 At The Bat takes a look at the Cardinals’ decision to sign Kyle Lohse and what it could mean for the offseason ahead.
  • Viva el Birdos projects the Cardinals ’09 roster and payroll.
  • McCovey Chronicles reacts to some quotes from Brian Sabean and what they mean for the Giants’ offseason.
  • Newberg Report thinks the price for the Rangers to acquire Jake Peavy would be too high, even if he’d waive his no-trade clause to go there.
  • Athletics Nation sees no point in signing Jason Giambi.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.

Lohse Signing May Complete Cards’ Rotation

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Today we have more on the Kyle Lohse signing from Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  After several weeks of negotiation, Lohse agreed to a backloaded four-year, $41MM deal with full no-trade protection (Rob Neyer calls this a "dreadful use of resources.")  Scott Boras is certain Lohse could’ve gotten more money and years on the open market, but this doesn’t seem like much of a discount.  It was Lohse who told Boras to initiate extension talks.

Strauss finds it unlikely the Cards will ink another starter to a long-term deal now, instead going after a swingman type.  Chris Carpenter is expected to choose rehab over surgery; if that doesn’t work out the team’s plans could change.  Strauss says the Cardinals have not talked to Braden Looper about a new contract.  He seems likely to sign elsewhere.

Right now the Cardinals are situated with a rotation of Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Lohse, Todd Wellemeyer, and Joel Pineiro.

Kyle Lohse Signs Extension

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6:04pm: The deal is official – four years, $41MM according to the AP.  Lohse also gets a full no-trade clause.  It’s a bit better than the Silva price.

10:19am: According to Derrick Goold and Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals plan to finalize a four-year extension for starter Kyle Lohse this morning.  Sources tell Goold and Strauss the deal will be similar to Carlos Silva’s four-year, $48MM contract.

It may be tempting to call this a loss for Scott Boras, since his client chose not to test the open market.  Lohse settled for $4.5MM in March this year after turning down a three-year, $21MM offer from the Phillies.  However, Boras still comes out a winner as the Cardinals are not getting any kind of discount.  Plus, taking the Phillies’ offer would’ve been a mistake.

I’m with Viva El Birdos on this one – there’s no upside to signing Lohse at this price. What are the odds this deal looks solid even halfway through?

Goold and Strauss say the Cardinals earmarked about $15-16MM for the rotation this winter.  That means Lohse is the big signing and the other pitcher will be a bargain buy.  The Cards will use another $15MM or so to fill other needs.  Brian Fuentes and Orlando Hudson could be considerations.

Cards Talking Extension With Lohse?

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3:26pm: General manager John Mozeliak recently said in an interview that the press conference will be held tomorrow at 4:30, and that Cardinals fans "would be very happy" with the announcement.

1:59pm: Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the Cardinals are possibly discussing an extension with free-agent-to-be Kyle Lohse.

Lohse was scratched from his start today to meet with team doctors, according to manager Tony La Russa, who was quoted as saying:

“There is no Lohse ‘announcement.’ I think what it means is there is interest and possibly progress in the negotiations.”

This situation is very similar to a situation in Spring Training, when the Cardinals had Adam Wainwright meet with team doctors the day before announcing an extension. The Cardinals have a press conference scheduled for tomorrow.

Lohse signed a one-year $4.5MM deal with the Cardinals in the offseason. It’s been well-documented over the past few years that he has been seeking a multi-year deal worth over $10MM per season. He may very well have earned himself that with a career year this season. Lohse will finish 15-6 for St. Louis, with a 3.78 ERA and 119 Ks in 200 IP.

Goold writes that senior baseball writer Joe Strauss has learned that the deal could be similar to the value of the four-year, $48MM contract that Carlos Silva signed with Seattle in the offseason. If it happens, this seems like a considerably better signing than the Silva deal, and one the Cardinals need with some question marks in their starting rotation next season.

I imagine a lot of teams are upset that they passed on Lohse in the offseason, while the Cardinals are very happy with how affordable he was to them, and how late they were able to sign him. Fifteen wins and a 3.78 ERA for $4.5MM is hard to come by from a free agent these days.

Cardinals Could Deal Lohse

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According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Cardinals are willing to trade Kyle Lohse in the right deal.  They’re looking for a bat and a reliever. 

Lohse could be one of the better names out there, though he’s better served in the NL.  The Cardinals certainly won’t be sellers – they’re just percentage points behind the Brewers for the wild card.

Odds and Ends: Eaton, Dykstra, Lohse, Burnett

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Let’s round up some linkage.

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