Minnesota Twins Pitcher, Kyle Lohse, was born on December 4, 1978, in Chico, California. He attended Hamilton City (CA) High School where he played football, basketball and baseball. He was named All-Conference athlete throughout his high school career. He attended Butte (CA) Community College where he continued his All-Conference achievements. He was originally drafted in the 29th round of the 1996 MLB draft by the Chicago Cubs. In 1999 he was traded to the Twins in a deal involving Rick Aguilera. He was 22 years old when he broke into the big leagues on June 22, 2001 with the Minnesota Twins.

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In 2003, he started 33 games and went 14-11. He had a 4.61 ERA. In 2004, he did not have quite as good of a season, going 9-13 with a 5.34 ERA. With Rick Reed gone in 2004, Kyle was supposed to step into the No. 3 starter role and show improvement as a key contributor to a contending team. He fell short and was plagued by a lack of command and a tendency to overthrow and lose his composure when he had a bad inning. Twins executives refused to give up on him, believing his combination of size, strength, athleticism and three good pitches can make him a solid No. 2 or 3 starter.

Too often in 2004, Kyle left his fastball over the middle of the plate, nibbled with his breaking pitches and fell behind, or issued hurtful walks. While he has good stuff, he can't overpower hitters with a 93-94 MPH fastball. He must locate the ball to succeed. He has a solid slider and curveball, but needs to consistently execute his changeup. He happily ended 2005 with a 9-13 record and a 4.18 ERA, his best in five major-league seasons.

A good, agile athlete, Kyle shows quick reflexes as a fielder and good speed covering first base. He gets to a lot of balls, usually fielding them cleanly, but sometimes makes mistakes trying to force the spectacular play. He has a decent move to first base, though he allowed a career-high 16 steals by opposing baserunners in 2004.

He has an unfortunate tendency to be very inconsistent in his pitching appearances, going deep into the game with good performance on one start and being pulled in the early innings the next. This tendency has led some fans to jokingly speculate that there are actually two Kyle Lohses, Kyle and his evil twin brother Lyle Kohse.

Eligible for salary arbitration this winter, Kyle Lohse might not be back with the Twins -- who have starters Johan Santana, Brad Radke and Carlos Silva signed, and prospects Scott Baker and Francisco Liriano are ready for next year's rotation. Kyle Lohse is quoted as saying, "Whatever happens, happens. I know I'll still be pitching in the big leagues." "I feel like I've given them everything I've got." His ERA has risen each of the last three years, but he seems to be a mental adjustment away from being a dependable big league pitcher.