Let’s take a break from the Manny furor for a second…
Ever since Jed Lowrie took over at shortstop, the furor over the production out of shortstop immediately abated; Red Sox fans had their guy in place.
Unfortunately, Lowrie has done everything but run away with the job. Through Wednesday, he was hitting .250/.342/.281 with one double in his eight hits over 32 at-bats. Small sample size? Yes. Enough to supplant Julio Lugo? No.
On the defensive end, I can see what his detractors speak of in terms of his range, but he’s also quite sure-handed. He has yet to make an error on the season and has a 4.41 range factor at short with an .889 zone rating. Comparing that with the qualifying shortstops in the major leagues shows Lowrie would rank first in fielding percentage (unsurprisingly, that’s small sample size at work here), a surprising sixth in range factor (doth my eyes deceive me?) and first in zone rating. That’s pretty good. It means Lowrie can get to the balls in terms of range and is the best shortstop in getting to balls assigned to his defensive zone.
What does this mean? Well, it means that if he can keep up those statistics, he will easily be among the best defensive shortstops in the major leagues. It would be far, far easier to overlook his lack of power if he was another Alex Gonzalez with the glove.
His batting line isn’t worth getting worked up over. He’s 24, this is his rookie year, he only has 74 career at-bats to his name and he’s shown that he does have the offensive profile to succeed in the big leagues.
That being said, it’s clear that Lowrie may not be the heir apparent at shortstop, not with the news that the Red Sox looked at Miguel Tejada and were rebuffed by the Houston Astros. If the Sox are looking at Tejada, it would be to start at shortstop, and it would be to remain the starter post-Lugo return. Heck, there was a rumor (who knows if it’s true) that the Red Sox were willing to flip Jed Lowrie to Pittsburgh for Jack Wilson.
What ramifications does this have? For one, Julio Lugo’s grasp on the starting job is tenuous at best, both now and in the off-season. Two, the Red Sox aren’t neccessarily predisposed to Lowrie as the answer. Could the Sox make a run at Rafael Furcal in the offseason? Revisit the Tejada talks?
With today being the trade deadline, the focus is going to be on if Manny is traded or if the Red Sox can get a reliever — as well as it should be, and we’ll be around all day to chat about any potential trades. But the Red Sox aren’t going to be perfect, trade or no trade, and one place where they’ll be trying to upgrade in the coming months will be shortstop, unless Jed Lowrie suddenly morphs into a .300/.400/.500 hitter. For one reason or another, the hype surrounding Lowrie has been muted compared to the hype that surrounded Dustin Pedroia.
For that reason, I think Lowrie could very well be trade bait this coming year. If they’re already looking to replace Lugo and don’t seem particularly high on Lowrie, it might mean they have other plans for short. The coming weeks with Lowrie at shortstop will go a long way towards dictating what approach the Sox take in the offseason for short, and there’s no definitive answer that can be made now except for this: as of this moment, the Red Sox are interested in bringing in a new shortstop to man the position. To replace Julio Lugo. To relegate Jed Lowrie back to Pawtucket.
Is Jed Lowrie in the Red Sox plans? For the rest of the year, absolutely. For the rest of his career? The jury’s out.
You tell me: Do you want to see Lowrie as the permanent shortstop or do you agree with the Sox attempting to bring in a new shortstop? Can Lowrie ever hit and field to be a solid starting shortstop?
