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High on Lowe The hurler's emergence could put Boston over the topPosted: Thursday June 06, 2002 5:36 PM
Back in spring training, Derek Lowe described the joys of being a starter and not a closer. "You get to work on all your pitches," said the Red Sox right-hander, who was moved to the rotation last September after losing his job as the team's stopper. "And every pitch isn't life or death. If you give up a run in the first inning, you shake it off and move on. As a closer, if you give up a run in your first inning a lot of times you lose the game." Still, Lowe the starter has been as stingy as closers are expected to be. He improved to 9-2 Wednesday after holding the Tigers scoreless on two hits over six innings in Boston's 11-0 blowout. Lowe leads the American League in wins, has the league's lowest ERA (1.81), and opponents are hitting a major league-low .167 against him. (No other pitcher in the majors has an ERA under 2.00 or an opponents' average below .200.) Lowe has also gone an astounding 104 innings without allowing a home run, a feat that dates back to last year. Home runs? Hitters are having trouble getting the ball out of the infield against Lowe. According to Stats, Inc., only 22.2 percent of balls put in play off Lowe have been hit in the air, the lowest percentage in the majors. On Wednesday, Detroit managed to hit one ball to the outfield, a flyout by Wendell Magee. Both of the Tigers' hits in that contest were infield singles. Lowe has dominated the league in a fashion usually reserved for his teammate Pedro Martinez, and his emergence is the biggest reason the rest of the AL thinks the Red Sox are for real this season. (Keep in mind that Boston was in first place at the beginning of June in 1999, 2000 and 2001, and ended up tumbling down the stretch each year.) For the first time since he arrived in Beantown, Martinez has an effective pitcher to follow him in the rotation. That's a huge development, considering that Pedro -- who is still finding his way back from last year's shoulder injury -- characterized this season as a "rehab year" after struggling against the Tigers earlier this week. "You're damn right they can hang with the Yankees," Mariners manager Lou Piniella says of the Red Sox. "They have a legitimate leadoff hitter [Johnny Damon], a legitimate No. 3 hitter [Nomar Garciaparra] and a legitimate cleanup hitter [Manny Ramirez, when healthy]. Added to that, now they have nice pitching, too." Pudge's future is a question markOne of the more interesting subplots in another lost season for the Texas Rangers will begin to unfold when Ivan Rodriguez returns to the lineup this weekend. Pudge has been out since April 15 with a herniated disk in his back. This is the third straight year the 30-year-old catcher has spent a significant stretch on the disabled list (he hasn't played more than 111 games since 1999). That's not exactly a track record that makes teams want to shell out millions on the free agent market, which is where Rodriguez will find himself after the season. Texas owner Tom Hicks is already saying he wants to rein in the franchise's lavish spending, so the chances of the 10-time All-Star returning to the team next year seem slim. Other clubs will be watching Rodriguez closely for the remainder of the season to see if he stays healthy and productive. One AL scout told me he worries that Pudge's body is breaking down and said that he'd be leery of signing the backstop to a rich, long-term deal. Then there's Rodriguez's more immediate effect on the Rangers. Yes, he'll boost an offense that inexplicably ranks 10th in the league in runs per game. But he's never been known for his pitch-calling skills or for his ability to handle a staff. With Pudge behind the plate, the Rangers have a 5.92 ERA this season. When backup Bill Haselman catches (he's carried most of the load in Pudge's absence), the staff's ERA drops by more than a run, to 4.72. The top priority for Texas the rest of this season should be sorting through and developing a group of young pitchers that includes Rob Bell, Joaquin Benoit, Colby Lewis, Aaron Myette and the recently demoted Doug Davis. You have to wonder if having Rodriguez behind the plate is in the best interest of the franchise going forward. Relaxed Rockies respond to HurdleConsider this example of the attitude shift new manager Clint Hurdle has brought to the Colorado Rockies since taking over for the fired Buddy Bell in April. After one of the team's first losses under his tenure, the newly hired Hurdle walked into the clubhouse. It was silent. Players picked at their postgame meals with their heads down. The new skipper stalked over to the clubhouse stereo, blasted some music and started shouting, asking what the problem was and why everyone was tiptoeing around the locker room as if it were a funeral parlor. A small gesture, but the message was clear: Lighten up and have some fun. The Rockies have clearly adapted Hurdle's attitude and have looked much looser and less tentative on the field than they did under Bell. Little wonder the team, which was 6-16 when Bell was axed, has won 25 of 38 games since. Sports Illustrated staff writer Stephen Cannella covers the baseball beat for the magazine. Touching Base appears every week on CNNSI.com |
