Is Lowell a keeper?
He'll have several suitors if Red Sox aren't interested
There's a lot to like about Lowell - we're talking Mike here, as opposed to the refurbished Merrimack Valley mill town - and now the Red Sox front office must decide if there is enough to like about the third baseman to extend his contract for another three or four years.
"Re-sign Lowell! Re-sign Lowell!"
Boston fans in Denver Sunday night, a few thousand strong, lingered in the Coors Field stands for more than an hour to watch the Red Sox celebrate their World Series sweep of the Rockies. As they watched, the chants of Red Sox Nation implored club owners and management to bring back Lowell, the World Series MVP and self-acknowledged "throw-in" from the Nov. 24, 2005, trade that also brought Josh Beckett to town.
In a rare fan-like display of his own, Red Sox catcher/captain Jason Varitek held up a homemade sign, "Re-sign Lowell," as he road atop a duck boat in Tuesday's rolling rally. It may not have been life imitating art, but it was certainly the lifeblood of the Sox imitating the fandom. No doubt, too, it underscored to John Henry, Larry Lucchino, and Theo Epstein how important it would be to keep the respected, gregarious Lowell in the clubhouse.
For the record, Lowell was not among the first wave of Red Sox to hustle their formal papers to the free agent bureau Tuesday. Curt Schilling filed, as expected, and he'll likely be gone, with a handful of clubs believed ready to overbid on the soon-to-be 41-year-old warhorse. Pitcher Matt Clement, outfielder Bobby Kielty, and utilityman Eric Hinske all filed, too, with the Sox expected to show low to moderate interest in all three.
Lowell, however, had yet to fill out his papers, perhaps his writing hand too tired and cramped from lugging around both the World Series and MVP trophies for a couple of days. He'll get around to it soon, just as there is no doubt he'll be seeking a generous bump over the $9 million the Sox paid him this season - the third year of a deal he originally signed with the Marlins.
"I think I'll take that step by step," said Lowell in the moments that immediately followed Boston's second Series title in four years. "But I've never hid the fact that I like playing in Boston."
Mike likes the Hub, much like the Hub likes Mike. The dilemma here, though, is similar to what the Sox faced when the likes of Johnny Damon and Pedro Martínez reached free agency in their later years. Damon (to the Yankees) and Martínez (to the Mets) both were allowed to walk, and thus far, the Sox have seen the better of the return in turning them free.
Lowell, whose seventh-inning solo homer provided needed insurance in the Game 4 victory in Denver, will turn 34 prior to Opening Day 2008. Not old, and surely not encumbered with some of the, shall we say, funky personality traits (read: runaway egos) of Messrs. Damon and Martínez.
But 34 is 34, and Lowell's re-signing ultimately will come down to how many years the Sox are comfortable extending him as he enters what are considered baseball's AARP years.
Wade Boggs was 33 when he reported to spring training with the Sox in 1992, his place in the Hall of Fame all but reserved after 10 monster years, and he went out that season and hit a career-low .259. Let it be duly noted that he played seven more years after that '92 hiccup, and batted .307. Who, other than the talk radio lunatic fringe, is going to argue with .307? But, Boggs did hit .346 those first 10 years, then tubed to .259 before "recovering" sufficiently to end up at .328 lifetime.
Just for another hometown comparison, Sox outfielder Dwight Evans was 34 when he reported to spring training in 1986, and hit .259 with 26 homers and 97 RBIs that season. Two years before, he hit .295 with 32 homers and 104 RBIs, and followed that with .263, 29, and 78. By age 33-34, he was in decline, but he rallied well in his mid- and late 30s. In fact, from 1987-89, Evans averaged 25 homers and 111 RBIs. He called it quits after spending 1991 with the Orioles, exiting stage right (field) a few months shy of his 40th birthday.
Lowell, until this year, had never hit better than .293 (2004 with Florida) or had more than 105 RBIs ('03). But with Sox stalwarts David Ortiz and Manny Ramírez ahead of him in the order this year, Lowell posted a career-best .324, belted 21 homers, and drove in a career-best 120.
Can Lowell stay somewhere around those numbers for three years, four years, five years? That's the debate going on now inside the Sox' front office.
Meanwhile, we can only guess the conversation going on inside the Yankees' front office. General manager Brian Cashman found out Sunday, shortly before Lowell hugged that MVP trophy, that superstar third baseman Alex Rodriguez chose to opt out of the final three years of his contract.
He had concerns, said Rodriguez, about the club's future, what with manager Joe Torre gone and a new skipper yet to be named - a subject that was settled with the hiring of ex-Yankees catcher Joe Girardi. Rodriguez also wondered about the fate of teammates Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, and Andy Pettitte.
Lowell, originally a Yankees draft pick (20th round, 1995), could be just the fit for that vacant third base job in the Bronx. He has the game, and he speaks fluent Spanish, which is of added value in New York. The Yankees, according to the
Question is, how would those numbers look to the Red Sox? Well, if we were to take the extreme (say, five years/$70 million) and look at what the Sox gave J.D. Drew . . . then it's a tie. Drew, who will turn 32 Nov. 20, tore up his deal with the Dodgers last year and signed on with the Sox for five years/$70 million.
Those same Boston fans who ringed the lower bowl of Coors Field Sunday night, along with chanting for the Sox to re-sign Lowell, also bellowed, "Don't sign A-Rod." Once again, the Nation was heard.
Nearly a week after those exhortations filtered through the thin Colorado air, there is still a lot to like about Lowell. But that may no longer be a Massachusetts secret.
Kevin Paul Dupont can be reached at dupont@globe.com.
