Newcomer Lowrie a hit with Sea Dogs

He’s not really a slugger, but he leads his team in home runs. He’s not really a speedster, but he’s third on the team with five stolen bases. He’s not really a seafood guy, but he loves sushi.

Meet Jed Lowrie, a case study in contradictions and the Portland Sea Dogs’ starting shortstop.

Lowrie, a West Coast native playing on the East Coast, is also the No. 16 prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization, according to Baseball America’s 2007 rankings.

“I’d say I’m kind of a balanced hitter. I hit .300 my freshman year in college with no home runs, but then hit .399 with 17 as a sophomore and then .320 with another 14 my junior year, so I guess it was just a matter of maturing,” Lowrie said. “I don’t swing for the fences, but I do look to hit the ball hard.”

He’s been hitting the ball hard at a fairly regular clip in the Double-A Eastern League this season. The 6-foot, 180-pound shortstop is currently Portland’s second-leading hitter with a .297 average, but he leads the team in just about every other offensive category: 25 doubles, seven triples, seven homers, 44 RBIs, and 53 walks.

His statistical output is quite an improvement over last season, when he hit .262 with three homers and 50 RBIs at Single-A Wilmington (Del.).

“I don’t know if I’ve changed anything,” Lowrie said about his offensive surge. “It was really just a matter of playing every day and getting used to the whole grind. Last year was a big-time learning experience.”

This year is no different with the move to Double-A, although you might not know it from his stats.

“You have to learn to maintain the same mental approach. Last year, I think I grew up a little as a ballplayer,” said the Salem, Ore., native. “That’s one of the hardest parts about the game is knowing you’re not going to get a hit every time and not getting too high when things are going well. As soon as you think you’ve got the game figured out, you find out otherwise.”

It’s a veteran approach for the 23-year-old player, but not surprising, given his success against established pros already in a 21/2-year-old pro career.

“”When I first came to spring training last year, I played in the big league camp a couple weeks when Dustin Pedroia got hurt,” Lowrie said. “I think I hit over .400 so that was fun getting a chance to show them what I can do.”

Back in May, he faced future Hall of Fame pitcher Roger Clemens, who was making a tune-up start for New York Yankees’ affiliate in Trenton. Lowrie went 2-for-2 with a walk and two doubles.

“One double was off a slider and other was a curve,” Lowrie recalled. “I was wondering how I’d be against him, but I wasn’t awestruck or anything. As soon as I got in the box, he was just another guy. I’m just trying to get where he is.”

If he keeps up his current production and pace, the 2004 PAC-10 Player of the Year and Boston’s 2005 first-round supplemental draft pick (No. 45 overall) should be in the majors.

The former Stanford University second baseman is doing his best to quicken the pace by putting in constant work in the batting cage and working with coaches both on his offensive and defensive skills, in particular his fielding range.

“Defensively, it’s continuing to learn the position. Hitting wise, it’s getting myself into good counts to hit and not missing the pitches I want to hit,” he explained. “Footwork is something I’ve really been working on. It’s hard for me to tell how much progress I’m making, but it’s baby steps and I think I’m improving.”

About the only thing he hasn’t gotten used to yet is the Maine/New England accent.

“You take the ‘ER’ and turn it into an ‘A’ and you take the ‘A’ words and turn them into ‘ER,'” he said. “It still makes me laugh because I’m not really used to it.”

MacDonald adjusting to Triple-A

Former Camden-Rockport High School and University of Maine baseball standout Mike MacDonald is still adjusting to the challenges of life as a Triple-A pitcher with the Syracuse Skychiefs.

The 25-year-old Camden native has compiled a 3-6 record with a 4.64 ERA in 13 starts since being called up from the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats May 5. The righthander has allowed 90 hits in 77 2/3 innings through Sunday. He has allowed just 19 walks and struck out 44 batters.

Masterson-ful week

After debuting with the Portland Sea Dogs by allowing no hits in 6 2/3 innings, recent call-up Justin Masterson also won his second start by throwing six shutout innings and allowing three hits and one walk with seven strikeouts. That was enough to earn the 22-year-old Eastern League player of the week honors for July9-15.

Andrew Neff can be reached at 990-8205, 1-800-310-8600 or at aneff@bangordailynews.net