Derek Lowe stopped being Derek Lowe last season. Big mistake. He thinks it’s the reason his performance fell to its worst level in years.
How bad was Lowe? For the first time in 10 years, he failed to reach double digits in wins, and he posted his highest ERA since 2004. Keep in mind that Lowe is not accustomed to being a liability on his team, having won 137 games between 2003 and 2010 with the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves.
As of Oct. 31, Lowe is the fifth starter in the Indians’ rotation, having been traded for a minor-league pitcher. The Braves will pay two-thirds of Lowe’s salary, but the Tribe will be responsible for the $5 million that remains in the final year of Lowe’s multiyear deal.
Lowe is 38. He will be 39 on June 1, so isn’t it logical that age might be the overriding factor in a 2011 season that saw his record slide to 9-17 with a 5.05 ERA? Lowe doesn’t think so.
Asked if he had altered his arsenal of pitches the past few years, he said: “I’m not at the stage of my career to start throwing a knuckleball. But I started throwing a cutter a couple of years ago. I’ve become a breaking ball pitcher, and for me, that’s not the way to go.
“I have to be a fastball pitcher, a guy who throws down and away. Last year, that was my problem. I have to get back to throwing my fastball, to commanding my fastball.”
Lowe has been known as a sinker, slider guy, a pitcher who depends on inducing batters to beat the ball into the dirt. He believes he is on he way to becoming that pitcher again.
“I got into such a mechanical funk — [pitching coach] Roger McDowell and I took note of it — but I couldn’t stop it. My pitching was not competitive, to be honest. But you learn from it and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
In the short term, Lowe felt he was powerless to make the proper corrections. He spent a fitful September losing all five of his starts, compiling an 8.75 ERA and averaging only 4‚ innings per outing.
After his misspent season, for the first time in his career Lowe found himself out of a job. The Braves announced that he would not be in next year’s rotation and not long afterward, he was shopped around, eventually being traded to the Indians.
“My reaction was — it was expected,” Lowe said of being traded. “I had a brief conversation, actually a texting, with Frank Wren, the general manager of the Braves, and I got the impression I was going to be traded. A couple of days later it happened, and now I’m excited to be here.”
Even as he has grown older, Lowe has been remarkably durable. For the past 10 years, he has made no fewer than 32 starts, the equivalent of a full season for most pitchers. Last year, he started 34 games.
“Some of it is luck, I’ll be the first to say that,” he said. “But I’ve always been a hard worker. I love the game, and I enjoy putting in the time. Game day is actually the easiest day for me.
“The most important thing for me is to pitch every five days. You’re going to have good days and bad days, but it’s imperative to make your starts.”
Since the end of the season, Lowe thinks he has made progress in fixing his delivery.
“I started working out a month ago,”’ he said. “So I’ve been working on it, trying to get that muscle memory back. [The defect] already has gone away, but I have to make sure I stay on top of the ball and do the other things that all pitchers have to do.”
General Manager Chris Antonetti is gambling that a starter who skidded badly at age 38 will rebound when he is 39. Lowe probably hasn’t thought of his situation those terms. More likely on his mind is reaching 2,700 career innings, 180 career wins and helping his team reach the postseason.
New catcher signed
The Indians signed catcher Michel Hernandez to a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to major-league spring training camp.
Hernandez, 33, spent the second half of 2011 at Double-A Akron and Triple-A Columbus, hitting a combined .320 with two home runs and 26 RBI in 39 games after being signed as a free agent July 1.
His minor-league career has spanned 14 seasons, starting in 1998, two years after he defected from Cuba. He has played in 45 games with the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays, batting .237 in 118 at-bats.
Holiday party invitation
The Wahoo Club, the booster club of the Tribe, will hold its annual holiday party Dec. 3 at 10 a.m. at Executive Caterers at Landerhaven. For information, call Bob Rosen at 440-724-8350 or log onto hwww.wahooclub.com.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/tribematters. Follow the Indians on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ABJ_Indians. Follow ABJ sports on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/sports.abj.
