Pick Your Poison

Mike Lowell knows what Manny Ramirez went through Friday, when the Angels intentionally walked David Ortiz twice—and unintentionally walked him two other times—in order to take their chances with Ramirez.

The Angels, of course, paid dearly in the ninth inning, when Ramirez crushed a three-run homer off Francisco Rodriguez that soared far beyond the Green Monster seats to give the Red Sox a 6-3 win in Game Two of the AL Division Series and a commanding two games to none lead. The Sox go for the clincher today in Anaheim, when Curt Schilling faces Jered Weaver at 3:07 p.m.

Lowell batted cleanup in each of his final 27 games this season as Ramirez battled a strained left oblique. Ortiz drew 25 walks over that time but also hit .394 with 10 homers and 25 RBI.

“I don’t think [the walks to Ortiz are] out of disrespect to Manny—David, he’s been on fire,” Lowell said. “But that’s one of our true strengths with those two, man. You’ve got to pick the poison. The more times they walk David, the more times Manny gets up. So that helps us all out.”

Ortiz getting walked helped Lowell out down the stretch. He hit .330 with 27 RBI in his final 27 games as he capped a career-best season. Lowell’s success—coupled with the possible rebirth of sixth-place hitter J.D. Drew and the recent resurgence of seventh-place hitter Jason Varitek—adds depth to the Sox lineup and gives opposing pitchers plenty to worry about beyond the Ortiz-Ramirez pairing.

“When you’re getting good at-bats, it definitely helps the guy in front of you and the guy behind you,” Lowell said. “If you’ve got a guy that’s absolutely scuffling, they’re going to pitch around the guy. It could be in the six hole, it could be in the five hole, it could be the three or four hole. So I think it’s very important—with David, Manny and myself and J.D.—to put together good at-bats. That doesn’t mean you get hits, but in certain situations, they don’t maybe want to load the bases or put runners on first and second because they know that guys in the lineup are putting together good at-bats. So it only helps us.”

Lowell, ever self-deprecating, said he didn’t mind when opposing managers walked Ortiz to face him. But he admitted he took an extra bit of pride whenever he succeeded following a walk to Ortiz.

“I think there’s a little bit inside of you that always feels like you want to prove them wrong because they feel like you’re a better match-up—you’re the better likelihood to make an out,” Lowell said. “I can only talk about my experience: I’m not really offended if they walk Manny to face me. I’m the manager, I’m doing the same thing.

“But it feels a little more special when you come through, that’s for sure. That’s human nature. I don’t think there’s a man alive who doesn’t feel that.”