Brewers Sign LHP Tom Gorzelanny To Two-Year Deal

UPDATE: JJon Morosi reports the deal is worth "close to $6 million" over two seasons. - KL

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the biggest day of the offseason to date.

Tom Haudricourt is reporting that the Brewers have signed veteran lefthander Tom Gorzelanny to a two-year deal, pending a physical, and will pay around $6 million.

Gorzelanny turned 30 in July and has pitched eight major league seasons as a member of the Pirates, Cubs and Nationals. He's been primarily a starter for most of his career but was used as a reliever with the Nationals in 2012, where he posted a 2.88 ERA over 45 appearances.

Obviously the first reaction when the Brewers sign a left-handed pitcher is to expect him to be used as a situational lefty, but that's probably not a good fit for Gorzelanny. He allowed lefties to hit .237/.289/.398 in 129 plate appearances in 2012, meaning their .687 OPS against him was only about 50 points lower than what he allowed to righties (.740).

Instead, Gorzelanny could give the Brewers a fair amount of flexibility with their pitching staff. He has a long track record as a serviceable, if not great, starter so he could slot into the rotation if one of the Brewers' other candidates falters in spring. If not, his recent work suggests he could be a very solid bullpen option.

Adam McCalvy says the Brewers and Gorzelanny have been "working on a deal all week," but somehow Doug Melvin must've forgotten to mention him when he listed five interesting free agent relievers in an MLB Network Radio interview on Monday.