Lohse finished 7th in Cy Young voting in 2012. Why can’t he find a team?
Usually, the market for starting pitchers is one that develops rather quickly. With a scarcity of quality, reliable arms, teams will often strike quickly to acquire a high end starter. Many deals tend to be overvalued, but the basic rules of supply and demand dictate this type of spending. This offseason has really been quite similar. Zack Greinke, a name brand without an ace resume, got paid the richest contract ever given to a right handed pitcher. Anibal Sanchez got four years and $86 million.. Edwin Jackson finally had a team interested enough to give him more than a one year contract. Even pitchers coming off of injuries received big money such as Dan Haren and Scott Baker have a contract. And, the league average/fifth starter types such as Joe Blanton, John Lannon, and Jason Marquis all have deals well above the minimum.
So, why doesn’t a pitcher who has thrown 399.1 innings over the past two seasons along with a 3.11 ERA, a 1.8 BB/9, and 5.6 K/9 have a contract for 2013?
