The Toronto Blue Jays lost to the Chicago Cubs for free-agent pitcher Ted Lilly on Wednesday, but they did reach a preliminary agreement on a one-year deal with Canadian outfielder Matt Stairs. 

Lilly agreed to a four-year contract worth $40 million US with the Cubs, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Former Blue Jays left-hander Ted Lilly will spend the next four seasons pitching for the Chicago Cubs.
(Kathy Willens/Associated Press)

The deal was contingent on Lilly passing a physical, the team
said.

"He's a Cub and wants to be part of getting them back to the
World Series," agent Larry O'Brien said.

"At the end of the day, Ted decided he wanted a change of scenery. The decision [to spurn Toronto] had nothing to do with length of contract or money. The offers are all about the same."

Lilly, 30, was 15-13 with a 4.31 earned-run average in 32 starts last season. He also limited left-handed batters to a .202 average in 2006, ninth-best among American League pitchers, and ranked seventh in the league in strikeouts per nine innings (7.93).

"We are looking for starting pitching," new Cubs manager Lou
Piniella said earlier Wednesday before the deal became official.
"He [Lilly] is a competitive guy. He likes to pitch. He's got a good breaking ball, but the good thing about him is that he gives you innings."

The left-hander might have been best remembered for his on-field confrontation with Blue Jays manager John Gibbons.

Lilly and Gibbons exchanged heated words — and reportedly punches — in the third inning of a 12-10 loss to the Oakland Athletics on Aug. 21.

The Blue Jays have turned their attention to free agent Gil Meche, 28, an 11-game winner with Seattle in 2006.

"I think we've done everything we could possibly do," said Ricciardi, who reportedly met with Meche's agent Greg Landry on Monday. "Really the ball is in their court at this point.

"I don't think it's going to be a long wait. I think we'll find something out in the next few days."

The Cubs, Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers are also interested in Meche. Some view Chicago as the front-runner because of the time Meche and new Cubs manager Lou Piniella spent with the Mariners.

Meche, who has a career ERA of 4.65, is reportedly asking for $40 million over four years.

Ricciardi will attempt to sign one pitcher, whether it's Meche or someone from their fallback list, which includes Jeff Suppan and Mark Redman.

Stairs excited

The deal with Stairs is expected to be announced later this week, allowing the Blue Jays to keep a spot on the 40-man roster open for Thursday's Rule 5 draft.

The Fredericton native and Ricciardi know each other from their days in Oakland and Stairs nearly signed with Toronto before the 2003 season.

"I'm very excited," Stairs, 38, said in an interview from Bangor, Maine. "We worked on it [Tuesday] night and it took about 10 minutes to get done. I was extremely happy, I'm really looking forward to coming back to Canada."

Stairs batted .247 with 13 home runs and 51 runs batted in last season for Kansas City, Texas and Detroit.

A deal with veteran infielder Chris Gomez, who spent 2004 with the Blue Jays, could also be completed in the next few days.

"We had Gomey here before and he did a great job for us, he's a great guy, a good veteran player," said Ricciardi. "He's a guy we've talked about."

With files from the Canadian Press