"I suspect the free agent market is going to treat him very kindly," Mozeliak said last Thursday. "And when you see the depth that we have coming, it's not something I'm prepared to rule out today, but I would say it's probably unlikely at this time."
With Mozeliak having limited interest in Lohse's services, the market is wide open for Lohse, who was 16-3 with a miniscule 2.86 ERA for the Cardinals in 2012.
So where may Lohse land once free agency kicks into high gear and team start bidding on his services? Here is a look at five possible and likely destinations for Kyle Lohse.
1. Washington Nationals - At first glance the Nationals rotation looks like it may be full, but then again, after this year when they shut down Stephen Strasburg early, you can never have enough pitching. Former Cardinal Edwin Jackson is a free agent as well, so there is a hole, but the Nationals could bring Jackson back or turn to John Lannan, who was the odd man out this season.
One wild card in this situation for Lohse though is the agent. Lohse's agent is Scott Boras, who is also the agent for Strasburg, Jayson Werth, and Bryce Harper. Boras is practically on the Nationals payroll at this point. Even though Jackson is also a Boras client too, Washington D.C. could be a very likely landing spot for Lohse.
2. Los Angeles Dodgers - The new ownership group in L.A. had zero reservations about spending money near the end of last season. So why would they stop now? Spending money is exactly what they will need to do if they want to bring in Lohse, who could fit in a rotation if the Dodgers choose not to offer a contract to Joe Blanton or pursue Zack Greinke.
L.A. could be desirable for Lohse for two reasons. Money of course will be a factor. And the fact that the Dodgers look to be a contender heading into 2013 will help as well.
3. Baltimore Orioles - Speaking of a contender in 2013, how about the "Fighting Showalter's"? Buck Showalter did an outstanding job in 2012 getting the Orioles into the playoffs with a rotation that was headlined with names like Miguel Gonzalez, Zach Britton, and Joe Saunders.
Lohse would immediately join Wei-Yin Chen and Jason Hammel to form a formidable top of the rotation as the Orioles turn into a team that could contend every year.
4. Chicago Cubs - There would no nothing that Cardinals fans hate more than to see Lohse land at Wrigley Field, but it just may happen. The Cubs have so many holes in their rotation that they could be willing to pay a hefty premium to bring Lohse in and stabilize what is almost always an ugly situation.
5. New York Mets - The Mets have their own free agent concerns with R.A. Dickey headed to free agency, but the Mets need to do more than just retain Dickey in order to compete.
If the Mets do bring in Lohse and retain Dickey to go along with ace Johan Santana, they could have a very formidable rotation in a pitcher's ballpark. The wildcard in the Mets rotation is Matt Harvey, who looks to have future ace potential.
These are just five possible destinations for Lohse. There very well could be many more teams involved and interested in his services as the crop of free agent pitchers is a bit weak this off-season.
Either way, Lohse is going to cash in, wherever he lands.
