NewsLowe to square off vs. Wolf in return to LA
Making first start at Dodger Stadium since signing with Braves
By Mark Bowman / MLB.com
08/06/09 10:00 AM ET
ATLANTA -- When Derek Lowe found his groove on Aug. 11 of last year, the Dodgers were one game back in the National League West race. A little more than six weeks later, with their division title in hand, they began their postseason by sending Lowe to the mound to face the Cubs in Game 1 of the National League Division Series.While going 6-1 with a 1.27 ERA in his final 10 starts, Lowe had legitimized himself as the Dodgers' ace and provided reason to believe that his 35-year-old arm would still be coveted when he hit the free-agent market, within which CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett would draw the primary attention from clubs looking to strengthen the front ends of their rotations.
After making an unsuccessful attempt to lure Sabathia away from the Yankees, the Dodgers still showed limited interest in Lowe but ended up signing the much-more affordable Randy Wolf to fill one of the vacant spots in their rotation.
Nearly a month after the Braves gave Lowe a four-year, $60 million contract, about a week before the start of Spring Training, the Dodgers gave Wolf a one-year, $5 million contract.
As fate would have it, Lowe's first two starts against the Dodgers have pitted him against Wolf. The Braves veteran proved victorious last weekend at Turner Field and will be looking to gain the same result on Thursday night, when he makes his first return to Dodger Stadium.
"I look forward to it, I think any time you go back to where you played it's always fun," said Lowe. "It's fun, but it's also challenging because they are good. It's not like you're going back to a place like where you think you can just throw your glove out there and have a chance to win."
During his four seasons in Los Angeles, Lowe went 54-48, posted a 3.59 ERA and made 22 more starts than any other Dodgers pitcher during that span. This successful and durable run was tainted by the displeasure the Dodgers gained when his relationship with a reporter became a public issue.
About the time the Dodgers were making a run at Sabathia, Lowe was marrying Carolyn Hughes, a former Dodgers reporter for FOX Sports Net, who met the veteran hurler in 2005.
Because both were still legally married to others when they began spending more time together that same year, the Lowe-Hughes relationship began to draw widespread attention from multiple media outlets.
"It was the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen written about," Lowe said. "People get divorced, they find each other and they get married -- like we did this offseason. It's pretty much that cut and dry."
While the Dodgers were certainly bothered by the publicity of this relationship, there was somewhat of a frayed relationship between Lowe and the club's upper management.
But multiple sources with knowledge of the events have said this wasn't the sole reason the 36-year-old sinkerballer wasn't provided an opportunity to return to the organization. Other factors included finances, age and the belief that the front of the rotation would prove strong enough with the presence of Chad Billingsley, Clayton Kershaw and Hiroki Kuroda.
"I enjoyed playing [in Los Angeles]," Lowe said. "There's no bitterness. I was never unhappy not playing. I enjoyed the coaches. I enjoyed the players and it was a great city to play in. It was a situation where my contract ended, and I came [to Atlanta] and they went in another direction."
During his one season with Lowe in Los Angeles, Dodgers manager Joe Torre quickly came to understand why the veteran hurler is widely considered an unselfish and fierce competitor.
While allowing two runs in five innings against the Phillies in Game 4 of the NL Championship Series, Lowe was pitching on just three days rest. Still, two days later, with his team on the brink of elimination, he returned to Dodger Stadium and let Torre know that he was ready and willing to serve in any necessary relief role.
"He came in and said 'Call me. I'll be in the bullpen,'" Torre said. "That's a team guy. I really enjoyed the time he was here. He was a good teammate for these guys."
Before the first week of Spring Training concluded this year, Braves manager Bobby Cox had become thoroughly impressed by Lowe's work ethic and went as far as to say, "I don't think I've ever seen anybody work as hard as him this year."
Both Lowe and Wolf have seemingly rebounded from the rough stretches they endured during the middle portion of this season.
Since going 1-5 with a 6.14 ERA during an eight-start stretch from May 28-July 5, Lowe has made five starts and gone 4-0 with a 3.00 ERA.
Wolf went 0-2 with a 5.23 ERA in six June starts and has posted a 3.11 ERA in the six starts that have followed. Torre is well aware of the fact that Wolf has pitched much better than the 2-3 record he's experienced during this improved stretch.
"Our ball club has won so many games late in the game that the chances are the starter's not going to be in the game and that's been the case with him," Torre said. "But he's been good and he's been good right from Spring Training on the way to where we are right now as far as being able to fight his way through."
When he allowed the Dodgers three runs in six innings with his victorious effort last weekend, Lowe confirmed his belief that it would be difficult facing many of the same guys that he called teammates over the past four years. While he'd watched them on a daily basis, he had never found himself in a position where he was attempting to carefully calculate the best approach to their specific swings.
Because he didn't win a World Series or become a postseason hero during his time in Los Angeles, Lowe's return to Dodger Stadium won't be nearly as emotional as the return he experienced while facing the Red Sox at Fenway Park on June 20.
That evening marked the first time that he'd faced the Red Sox since earning the win when they clinched Game 4 of the 2004 World Series. Six months later, he found himself wearing Dodger Blue and beginning a four-year experience in Los Angeles.
"Whenever you pitch somewhere for that length of time, you get to enjoy the city, the stadium and all of that," Lowe said. "It's always nice when you get to go back."
Mark Bowman is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
