Cards Sign Kyle Lohse to $4.25 Million Deal

by Charlie Wilmoth on Mar 13, 2008 10:45 PM EDT in News

In an offseason like this, how does Kyle Lohse end up signing for $4.25 million, plus a few hundred grand in potential performance bonuses? The Mariners signed Carlos Silva to a $48 million deal earlier this offseason; Lohse isn't obviously a worse pitcher, and with Seattle's big ballpark and shaky infield defense (UPDATE: The M's don't particularly have shaky infield defense. I have no idea what I was talking about there), Lohse might have actually pitched better for them than the groundball-inducing Silva.

I'm not calling out Seattle specifically - Lohse is a Scott Boras client, which may have meant that he'd have to be signed under a completely different set of conditions than Silva. I'm just wondering how Lohse got so little. He pitched 192 near-average innings last year, and he isn't old - he should have value, and to my eyes there are any number of contenders (Tigers, Phillies, Padres) and wanna-be contenders (Astros, White Sox) who could have used Lohse.

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The effect of Boras

Perhaps there is something to the effect of Boras. His reputation as a hard bargainer and a zealous advocate is certainly known, and most teams do not like having to deal with him when negotiating with a player. Now, perhaps this is not a problem with hot prospects and star players, but I imagine that this can be a real issue for a player that's merely average or below average. A player likely does not want his agent to adversely affect the player's marketability, but perhaps that is what is happening with Boras.

by Willton on Mar 14, 2008 11:47 AM EDT reply actions

Digs up dead horse to beat it again

ONLY $4.25 mil for near-league average? He's basically you-know-who with less consistency, and you-know-who got a crummy $1 mil.

by bucdaddy on Mar 14, 2008 1:39 PM EDT reply actions

The JFT

Yes, but Foggdemort was offered a similar amount from the Rockies (or he declined an option, I'm too lazy too look it up, but one or the other), trying to strike it rich on the free agent market, only to sign his paltry deal with the Reds. The lesson here, I think, is that the Mariners are stupid.

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http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/mlb

by whygavs on Mar 14, 2008 3:03 PM EDT reply actions