According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Tom Haudricourt (who I think I incorrectly identified as the Brewers' GM last week. My bad.), LaHawk took the initiative to meet with the Brewers.
The actual Brewers' GM, Doug Melvin, said of the negotiations:
"LaTroy wanted to come up and meet us. We had a chance to spend some time with him. We expressed our interest in LaTroy and he expressed his interest in the Brewers."
Haudricourt:
Negotiations accelerated when Hawkins' former club, Houston, pressed him to commit to returning or leaving. The Brewers boosted their offer from one year to two years, and the next thing you knew they had a $7.5 million agreement.
Way to go, Ed.
LaHawk:
"It was pretty much my idea (to attend the meetings) a few months ago. I'm a firm believer that talking to a guy in person, you get to know him a little bit better. I watched this team from afar and really admired what they've done the last few years putting a team together. I just wanted to be a part of that."
So the Brewers signed LaHawk because of his durability, and his being a team player, doing whatever is asked. Nope. We don't need guys like that.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
