Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Braden Looper Prefers National League

The Orioles should not count on landing free-agent right-hander Braden Looper, who would prefer to stay in the National League, according to major-league sources.

Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said he has spoken recently with one of Looper's agents, Alan Hendricks, but is "not optimistic" about signing the pitcher.

Looper remains the Dodgers' second choice behind free-agent lefty Randy Wolf. The Cardinals are not in the mix for Looper, who went 24-26 with a 4.52 ERA for them over the past two seasons.

While the Cardinals are comfortable with their rotation and not interested in Looper, the recession clearly is affecting the way they do business. Club officials are telling agents that they are out of money, a stunning development considering that the team will host the All-Star Game this season.

In a better economy, the Cardinals probably could have banked on the All-Star Game to boost season-ticket sales and other revenues.

Fox Sports

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