Kyle Lohse

Kyle Matthew Lohse ((born October 4, 1978 in Chico, California) is a right-handed starting pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. Originally drafted by the Chicago Cubs in (29th round), Lohse was traded to the Minnesota Twins in in a deal involving Rick Aguilera. It was in Minnesota that Lohse made his MLB debut, with the Twins on June 22, .

Lohse is a member of the Nomlaki nation. As of 2008, he is one of only three active non-Hispanic Native American players in Major League Baseball, with the others being Jacoby Ellsbury of the Boston Red Sox, and Joba Chamberlain of the New York Yankees.

High school career

At Hamilton Union High School in Hamilton City, California, Kyle Lohse played basketball, baseball, and football. In baseball, he was an All-Conference pick in all four years of high school.

Baseball career

was Lohse's first full year as a starter, when he posted a 13-8 record with an ERA of 4.23. He followed that with success in , starting 33 games and going 14-11 with a 4.61 ERA. In , he did not fare as well, going 9-13 with a 5.34 ERA. Lohse has been to one ALCS, with the Twins in 2002.

Lohse has a fastball in the low 90s, with his dominant pitch being his curveball. He tends toward inconsistent pitching appearances, throwing well and going deep into the game on one start, then having little control and being pulled in the early innings the next time out. On May 17, , he was sent down to AAA Rochester, and the Twins called up replacement pitcher Boof Bonser. Shortly after Matt Guerrier broke his thumb, Lohse was recalled to the Twins bullpen, on June 9, 2006. In his first 2006 relief appearance for the Twins the very next day, he pitched three innings before allowing a run, while hitting a batter, allowing three hits and walking a batter. After his recall from the minors, Lohse's attitude toward his team turned uncooperative and surly, quickly making him a player the Twins (and their fans) wished to part ways with.

In Lohse's first start at AAA on May 21, 2006, he allowed one run over seven innings while only having one walk. He also earned the win.

While in Minnesota, Lohse dedicated his time to Cars For Courage -- an organization helping disabled children with sports.

On July 31, 2006, Lohse was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for minor league pitcher Zach Ward. Lohse made his first start for the Reds on August 17, 2006.

On July 30, , Lohse was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for minor league pitcher Matt Maloney. After his departure from the Reds, Lohse's performance improved dramatically, and in 10 starts with the Phillies, Lohse went 2-0, receiving a large number of non-decisions due to late offensive rallies by the Phillies lineup. However, his ERA as a Philly fell to 4.44 and the Phillies went an impressive 8-2 in his starts.

On March 14, , Lohse signed a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. It's a one-year deal worth $4.25 million. The deal was a surprise considering Lohse's early demand of a four-year contract worth up to $40 million.

Lohse was one of the biggest surprises for the Cardinals in the first half of the 2008 season, going 11-2 with a 3.39 ERA. His performance was good enough to be considered for the All-Star Game, but he ended up not making the team.

Lohse was later suspended for five games for throwing at Reds' pitcher Edinson Volquez. However, Lohse appealed the ruling and pitched until a new decision is made. Lohse eventually dropped his appeal and served the suspension in full.

Lohse and the Cardinals agreed to a 4 year, $41 million contract extension on September 30, 2008

Career Stats

Yr	Ag	Tm	Lg	G	GS	W	L	Sv	ERA	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	K	AVG
2001	23	MIN	AL	19	16	4	7	0	5.68	0	0	90.1	102	60	57	16	29	64	.284
2002	24	MIN	AL	32	31	13	8	0	4.23	1	1	180.2	181	92	85	26	70	124	.259
2003	25	MIN	AL	33	33	14	11	0	4.61	2	1	201.0	211	107	103	28	45	130	.268
2004	26	MIN	AL	35	34	9	13	0	5.34	1	1	194.0	240	128	115	28	76	111	.305
2005	27	MIN	AL	31	30	9	13	0	4.18	0	0	178.2	211	85	83	22	44	86	.299
2006	28	MIN	AL	22	8	2	5	0	7.07	0	0	63.2	80	50	50	8	25	46	.308
2006	28	CIN	NL	12	11	3	5	0	4.57	0	0	63.0	70	33	32	7	19	51	.288
2007	29	CIN	NL	21	21	6	12	0	4.58	2	1	131.2	143	76	67	16	33	80	.280
2007	29	PHI	NL	13	11	3	0	0	4.72	0	0	61.0	64	33	32	6	24	42	.276
2008	30	STL	NL	33	33	15	6	0	3.78	0	0	200.0	211	88	84	18	49	119	.272
TOTALS	--	--	--	251	228	78	80	0	4.67	6	4	1,364.0	1,513	752	708	175	414	853	.282

8 Seasons

Stats as of September 28, 2008

References

External links

• Kyle Lohse Statistics at Baseball-Reference.com]
• Kyle Lohse Profile at Native American Sports Council]
• Lohse player profile page at stlcardinals.scout.com
•