Almost a year ago to the day, Lohse was acquired by the Cincinnati Reds to aid their 2006 playoff push, and today he was sent to the Phillies for the same reason. The Reds received 23-year-old lefty starter Matt Maloney.

"He has postseason experience [with the Twins] and consequently, we thought he'd be a good addition to our pitching staff," general manager Pat Gillick said. "He takes his turn and we needed somebody to pick up the slack and give us more depth in our pitching staff. Hopefully, he'll give us 10-12 decent starts in the last 56 games for whatever role that they decide to use him in."

Lohse is expected to bolster a starting rotation that has a 4.74 ERA, the third-worst in the National League. He could replace J.D. Durbin and make his Phillies debut Thursday at Wrigley Field, against the organization that drafted him in the 29th round in 1996.

In 21 starts for the Reds this season, the 29-year-old went 6-12 with a 4.58 ERA, and had the fifth-worst run support in the NL at 3.69 runs per game. Cincinnati only scored five or more runs for him in three of his starts.

He should get considerably more run support with the lethal Phillies, who have scored five or more runs in 60 of their 104 games this season.

"That's always a good thing for a starting pitcher to hear," Lohse said.

Did he suffer from the lack of run support?

"That's probably pretty fair to say," Lohse said. "I'm not big on using those things as an excuse, though. I just happen to be one of those guys that seems to happen to. But I'm not trying to put any blame on my teammates."

Lohse has pitched well lately, posting a 3-2 record and a 3.27 ERA in his past five starts, and holding opponents to a .231 average. He's tossed at least six innings in 15 starts. He's been largely inconsistent -- the 28-year-old posted a 0.77 ERA in his six wins, and a 7.97 ERA in his 12 losses.

Most of those losses included big innings.

The Phillies feel he's a better pitcher than that.

"At times, he's had trouble closing out innings," pitching coach Rich Dubee said. "We expect him to come in here and keep us in ballgames."

"My numbers are what they are," Lohse added. "I had a couple bad games here and there that kind of skewed the numbers."

After arriving last season from the Twins, Lohse went 2-5 with a 4.57 ERA in 12 starts, then signed to a one-year, $4.2 million contract to avoid his final year of arbitration eligibility in January. He'll be a free agent after the season.

"He's got a great arm and will fit in well here," said J.C. Romero, who played with Lohse with the Twins from 2001-06. "He can really help us."

Considering the Reds' plight this season, Lohse figured he'd be going somewhere.

"I've heard a lot of rumors," he said. "You never know until it happens. A lot of times, they don't happen. This time, it turned out to be true."

Gillick said that the Phillies are still looking to add, more likely for a reliever. They had interest in Dan Wheeler before he was dealt to Tampa Bay, and scouted St. Louis' Anthony Reyes, who it appears is no longer available.

It also appears to be a quality issue.

"I don't know that there is a bundle of good relievers sitting out there," Gillick said. "I don't know that they're available."