Lowrie doesn't need his Stanford education to know that that is an impossibility. But how about every other time?
After a 3-for-5 effort in his first ever game as the Red Sox leadoff hitter, the red-hot Lowrie was batting .500 (11-for-22) this season. Ten of those hits have come in Lowrie's last 15 at-bats, including his first home run of the season, a two-run shot that keyed the 4-1 victory.
To Lowrie, whose playing time is sporadic due in large part to his versatility, it's all about preparing for his opportunity.
"That's what is important to me," he said. "I know that preparation, it'll take me to where I want to go."
Where Lowrie would like to go is into the starting lineup on a regular basis. The presence of four veterans around the infield, and Lowrie's ability to spell them all late in games or when they need a day off, makes him still valuable in that "utility" role. But it's getting harder and harder for manager Terry Francona to keep Lowrie's name off the lineup card.
On Saturday, Francona wanted to sit the struggling Carl Crawford, who is batting .137 after a 3-for-28 stretch in the leadoff spot. Rather than turn to Jacoby Ellsbury or Dustin Pedroia, two guys familiar with the role, Francona gave the gig to a player who has batted sixth or lower in 114 of his 136 career starts, and not once at the top of the order. Francona figured Lowrie would "give the team four or five good at-bats and a chance to win."
That's exactly what he got.
Lowrie singled to start the bottom of the first inning and later scored on Adrian Gonzalez's base hit that gave Boston a lead it would never lose. In the second, he followed a leadoff walk by Ellsbury with a two-run shot into the Monster seats. That capped the scoring, but Lowrie had another single later in the game and his only two outs were rather well struck.
"He was on pretty much every pitch he swung at," Francona said. "If it was off the plate, he took it. He's been having as good, probably better, at-bats as anybody on the club right now."
If, for some reason, Lowrie is denied a chance for more at-bats Sunday, he'll go back to the pattern of preparation and wait. He is so locked in right now, that even that process brings satisfaction.
"That's what this game is all about," he said. "It's all competition at that point [once you get in the game]. Straight competition. The work and the preparation before the game, that's what gets you ready for that competition. That's what's great about this game."
It's also pretty fun when you're batting .500 more than two weeks into the season.
