Mike Lowell spoke to WEEI.com about his return to the Red Sox from thumb surgery and his trade to Texas that didn't go through.

"I don't view this as a major challenge," Lowell said. "If I'm healthy and teams out there think I can play every day, there's going to be a team that wants me to play. If that's beneficial to the Red Sox, I don't think any of this is contingent on whether it's beneficial to me. It doesn't matter. I have no say. But if it's beneficial to the Red Sox, then yeah, they'd make the move. And then you'd go wherever they send you. That's the thing. I can't say, 'Hey, I want to leave,' or, 'Hey, I want to stay.' "

Lowell has yet to start swinging a bat since the Dec. 30 surgery, but is throwing.

“I’m looking forward to getting ready for a season,” he said. “I understand that there’s a little bit of a gray area in what’s going to happen in my situation. But that doesn’t take away my excitement. I enjoy playing baseball. That’s what I like to do. Yeah, there’s still excitement. I still have the itch and want to get on the field, and most of all I like hanging out with the guys I go to the field with. There’s a lot for me to look forward to. I’m going into this with a good attitude and being upbeat. We’ll see where all of this takes me.