Lowe's stats aren't special, but his story is a true gem

Forget that Seattle Mariners' reliever Mark Lowe is 1-2 with a 3.71 ERA.

While the numbers are ordinary for an underperforming team, the fact that the right-hander is even pitching is extraordinary.

The former UT-Arlington standout was told he had a 30 percent chance of playing baseball again when he underwent microfracture surgery on his right elbow in October 2006.

"Absolutely, I feel lucky to be playing," Lowe said. "I didn't know if I'd ever be able to play again. Everything I've been through, and to be where I'm at now is more than I could ask for."

Where Lowe is now is in a role as a key contributor out of the Mariners' bullpen. It's been more than 18 months since he had tiny holes drilled in his right elbow to create scar tissue and regenerate cartilage growth. He had a setback last year during spring training when he had to have an arthroscopic procedure done again. That cost him more playing time, and he started the season on the 60-day disabled list.

But now Lowe, who was a fifth-round pick in the 2004 draft, feels like he's 100 percent, and he's throwing harder than he ever has. He has 15 strikeouts in his 17 innings. He recorded his first career save when closer J.J. Putz was hurt earlier this season.

Most important, he's completely healthy.

"I went to spring training pain-free and I'm still going," Lowe said. "The scar tissue is supposed to keep growing for a year and half after the surgery. I've never had velocity like I have right now this early in the season."

Being healthy has given the Houston native a chance to establish himself. He made his major league debut in 2006 and pitched in 15 games. The surgeries limited him to just four appearances last season.

He's already surpassed that this year, pitching in 19 games while trying to find a permanent role.

"I love being in situations where the game is on the line," the 24-year-old said. "I love to get one or two guys out when runners are on base. You set yourself up for failure a lot of times like that. But I want to be one of the guys called upon when they need that."

Lowe now faces a task that might be even tougher than coming back from elbow surgery. The Mariners were expected to compete for the American League West title. Instead, Seattle is mired in last place, has the second-worst record in the majors, and lost two of three to the Rangers in Arlington last week.

"We went through a bad stretch," he said. "We still have time to get back. Our attitude hasn't changed. We're going to start playing good baseball on a regular basis."

American League

Best team: The Cleveland Indians don't have the best record in the American League, but with the way they're pitching, that could be coming soon. Cleveland's starters went through a stretch of 55 innings in which they allowed one earned run. Cliff Lee has been the leader of a staff that also includes C.C. Sabathia, who is starting to find his groove.

Rising: Winning seven series in a row has brought the Texas Rangers back from the brink of disaster. The Rangers are 22-22 and back to .500 for the first time since April 11. They are winning despite a rotation that includes Sidney Ponson, Scott Feldman and Doug Mathis, who is scheduled to make his first start Tuesday.

Falling: It's bizarro-world time when the New York Yankees are expected to play more like the Tampa Bay Rays. But that's what Hank Steinbrenner said. Maybe he knows what he's talking about. After all, the Alex Rodriguez-less Yanks traveled to Florida and lost three of four to the streaking Rays.

Worst team: The Detroit Tigers are going to have to hit rock bottom soon, aren't they? The free falls continued last week with a four-game losing streak that included being swept by the Kansas City

Royals. Detroit isn't even putting up much of a fight in the losses, scoring a total of nine runs in its last six losses.

National League

Best team: Remember how the Arizona Diamondbacks were swept by the Colorado Rockies in the NLCS last season? Apparently the D'backs do, too. After struggling and being swept by the Cubs, Arizona rebounded by sweeping past the Rockies, with Randy Johnson, Micah Owings and Brandon Webb picking up victories.

Rising: The Houston Astros were cruising heading into the Lone Star Showdown. Led by Lance Berkman, they won six of seven games on a West Coast swing. The most impressive victory was by 8-7 against San Francisco in which the Astros rallied from a 6-0 deficit.

Falling: The holes in the St. Louis Cardinals' pitching staff are starting to catch up with them. St. Louis hasn't won a series since May 3-5 and went through a four-game stretch in which it gave up 28 runs. The Cardinals' bullpen is in trouble. Jason Isringhausen was relieved of his closer duties, then went on the DL.

Worst team: The Colorado Rockies have an early start on the rather dubious first-to-worst season. They are doing a fine job of it, dropping to 11 games under .500. The rallying cry of "Remember 2007" won't work. That team was never 11 games under before it made its unprecendented late-season run into the World Series.

LOCAL WATCH

Brad Hawpe, Colorado Rockies Much as his team has struggled, the outfielder from Saginaw Boswell hasn't found his hitting stroke yet. Hawpe, who had 116 RBI in 2007, is hitting just .244 with three homers and 16 RBI.

Shelby Ford, Pittsburgh Pirates Ford, who played at Fort Worth Southwest and TCU, hasn't played for Double A Altoona since April 11 and is on the disabled list (hip flexor). The second baseman hit .286 in the three games he's played, with a pair of runs and a stolen base.

Lance Broadway, Chicago White Sox The right-hander from TCU has been dominant at Triple A Charlotte. In eight starts, Broadway is 5-1 with a 1.67 ERA. The five victories are tied for fourth in the International League.

Royce Huffman, Chicago White Sox Huffman, a TCU ex, is giving Broadway some company in Charlotte. The 31-year-old infielder is hitting .238 with three homers and 12 RBI for the Knights. Both of the homers came in the last eight days.

Ryan Roberts, Texas Rangers The infielder from Hurst L.D. Bell and UT-Arlington nearly made the Rangers out of spring training. He's done a little bit of everything for Triple A Oklahoma. Mainly playing third, Roberts is hitting .277 and has scored 25 runs.

Who's hot

Lance Berkman, Houston: Two weeks ago, Berkman was hot. Now he's molten. He came into last week hitting .382 and found a way to raise his average. Three more homers and seven more RBI give him a legitimate Triple Crown shot.

Who's not

Eric Byrnes, Arizona: The emotional leader for the first-place Diamondbacks hasn't been carrying his weight at the plate. From May 8 to May 14, Byrnes went 1-for 25-and saw his average dip from an already bad .241 to .214.

NUMBERS GAME

0 Victories for Colorado Rockies ace Jeff Francis. He won 17 games in 2007.

"That's just not the Yankee way, what Joba did. Let everyone else do that stuff, but not a Yankee."

Hall of Fame closer Goose Gossage on the fist-pumping antics of Joba Chamberlain after he struck out David Dellucci on May 8