Texas Rangers Sign Free Agent Kyle Lohse
By Gavin Lee
The wait has ended for Kyle Lohse, as he has signed a contract with the Texas Rangers.
According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, Kyle Lohse has finalized a deal with the Texas Rangers after being linked to them recently.
lohse has deal with rangers
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) May 13, 2016
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Lohse pitched most recently in 2015 with the Milwuakee Brewers in the final year of a 3-year pact he signed just before the 2013 season opened. His $33 million dollar deal was actually pretty good value for the Brewers, despite his struggles last season. Lohse would put up 4.8 fWAR over the three years, worth about $34.6MM according to Fangraphs. It’s not often that deals given to 34-year olds end up coming back even.
This deal is actually a minor league pact, with a $2 million dollar (prorated) price tag should he make the MLB roster at any point. Lohse will have the option to hit free agency again if he is not called up by June 1st.
Can confirm @JonHeyman that Lohse has deal with #Rangers. Hear it is $2M with $1.5M in performance bonuses.
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) May 13, 2016
lohse gets $2M pro-rated plus $1.5M performance bonuses, as @Joelsherman1 said. also has june 1 opt-out (so theres optimism)
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) May 13, 2016
For the Rangers, Lohse will provide insurance for a rotation that has recently been hit with injury. Last week, A.J. Griffin went down with a shoulder injury and is uncertain on his return. An MRI indicated no structural damage for Griffin, and right now is just resting the shoulder before starting any rehab. Cesar Ramos is expected to start in Griffin’s spot Sunday against the Blue Jays.
With Yu Darvish set to return within the next few weeks, and Griffin able to rejoin the club at some point, Lohse seems like a solid depth add for a team looking at an NL West title run. Whether he is at all effective is another question. Lohse had a 5.12 FIP last year and was eventually bumped from the rotation.
At least at 37 the veteran still has a sense of humor:
Finally...
— Kyle Lohse (@KyleLohse26) May 13, 2016