One of the most valuable contributors to the Red Sox team of the past few years has been Mike Lowell. Few fans and personnel within the organization seem to recognize this, though.
Tuesday night, Lowell was on the bench as Boston played the 2nd of three games against Detroit. He was soon called into duty though after Kevin Youkilis was ejected following his bull rush on pitcher Rick Porcello after getting plunked. All Lowell did was hit a 3rd-inning solo homer to put Boston up 4-3 and a 5th inning two-run homer for what turned out to be the game-winning run in a 7-5 victory. All he's done since returning off the disabled list after missing considerable time in late-June and early-July is hit .368 with 16 RBI for an offense that looked like they had been on the D.L. during the same timeframe.
Lowell has always had to contend with potential opposition, as players like Victor Martinez, Casey Kotchman, and Adam LaRoche have all threatened Lowell's playing time, often sending him to the bench. Lowell has never seemed to have a problem with this.
Lowell had a great season in 2006, and nearly won the MVP award in 2007, as he drove in 120 runs and hit .324. 2008 was no friend to Lowell, as he missed almost 50 games with injury and the team nearly traded him away when they knew they had a shot at Mark Teixeira. Once again, visions of Adrian Gonzalez surfaced recently and Lowell was the trade bait.
It was always about trading Lowell away for one of these players, or to bench him in the event that they couldn't trade him after acquiring someone else. Many players would pain this situation in a negative light, and it might effect their attitude about their team. Lowell, however, has always been as classy as can be, going on with his duties and playing his best.
Fast forward to 2009, and Lowell is still a valuable contributor to the Boston team. While he's 35 years old and spent parts of the summer on the disabled list, he's still in the midst of a respectable season, with a .297 average, 13 home runs, and 57 runs batted in with just 323 at bats. These numbers are much better than those of David Ortiz.
Boston's management may dangle Lowell around as trade bait and show little appreciation for what he's worth to the team, but fans need to recognize how valuable he's been, and will continue to be to the organization for as long as he's here. This may be his last season in Boston, but he'll give it his all no matter what.
That's what Mike Lowell is all about. And Boston owes much of its recent success to him. - 31492
Tuesday night, Lowell was on the bench as Boston played the 2nd of three games against Detroit. He was soon called into duty though after Kevin Youkilis was ejected following his bull rush on pitcher Rick Porcello after getting plunked. All Lowell did was hit a 3rd-inning solo homer to put Boston up 4-3 and a 5th inning two-run homer for what turned out to be the game-winning run in a 7-5 victory. All he's done since returning off the disabled list after missing considerable time in late-June and early-July is hit .368 with 16 RBI for an offense that looked like they had been on the D.L. during the same timeframe.
Lowell has always had to contend with potential opposition, as players like Victor Martinez, Casey Kotchman, and Adam LaRoche have all threatened Lowell's playing time, often sending him to the bench. Lowell has never seemed to have a problem with this.
Lowell had a great season in 2006, and nearly won the MVP award in 2007, as he drove in 120 runs and hit .324. 2008 was no friend to Lowell, as he missed almost 50 games with injury and the team nearly traded him away when they knew they had a shot at Mark Teixeira. Once again, visions of Adrian Gonzalez surfaced recently and Lowell was the trade bait.
It was always about trading Lowell away for one of these players, or to bench him in the event that they couldn't trade him after acquiring someone else. Many players would pain this situation in a negative light, and it might effect their attitude about their team. Lowell, however, has always been as classy as can be, going on with his duties and playing his best.
Fast forward to 2009, and Lowell is still a valuable contributor to the Boston team. While he's 35 years old and spent parts of the summer on the disabled list, he's still in the midst of a respectable season, with a .297 average, 13 home runs, and 57 runs batted in with just 323 at bats. These numbers are much better than those of David Ortiz.
Boston's management may dangle Lowell around as trade bait and show little appreciation for what he's worth to the team, but fans need to recognize how valuable he's been, and will continue to be to the organization for as long as he's here. This may be his last season in Boston, but he'll give it his all no matter what.
That's what Mike Lowell is all about. And Boston owes much of its recent success to him. - 31492
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