Last year Kyle Lohse had a turbulent season, splitting time between Cincinnati and Philadelphia and compiling a middling 9-12 record with a nothing-to-write-home-about ERA of 4.62. During the off-season he stood by while other free agents were signed to multi-year deals; midway through spring training St. Louis swooped in and inked him in for a year at a bargain-basement $4.25 mil. That might turn out well for Lohse: His numbers — a 14-6 mark with an ERA under 4.00 through mid-September — will give him and his agent (the evil emperor Scott Boras) plenty of leverage to swing a lucrative four-year contract that might triple his annual paycheck come fall.