By Tim Povtak
FOXSportsSouth.com
March 7, 2011
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLA -- Derek Lowe won't be going down in history as one of the greatest pitchers of this era -- too many of those close-to-.500 seasons -- but he eventually might leave as the most durable.
If he ever leaves.
There is a lesson to be learned in his longevity.
Lowe, 37, will be the Atlanta Braves' Opening Day starter once again in 2011, expecting to make at least 30 starts for the 10th consecutive year and become the only current major league pitcher to win at least 12 games for the 10th consecutive year.
He is as close to clockwork as there is today.
"That's just the way it's always been with me. When it's your time to pitch, you pitch, good, bad or indifferent," Lowe said from his seat in the Braves clubhouse after a recent start. "Age is what you make of it. I have plans to play a long, long time."
In this age of pitchers struggling to stay healthy -- with arm, shoulder and elbow problems as prevalent as ever -- Lowe has been incredibly durable throughout his career. His 300 starts since 2002 are the second most in baseball behind only Barry Zito (304).
He and Javier Vazquez are the only active players today who have spent 13 or more years in the major leagues without a single stint on the disabled list.
Although Braves pitching coach Roger McDowell said Tuesday that he believes much of his great health is due to genetics and a great work ethic, Lowe still believes the secret dates back much further.
Unlike so many young athletes today, Lowe didn't play the game year round. He grew up in cold-weather Michigan, playing basketball, soccer and golf, changing sports when the seasons changed. And when he played baseball, he wasn't even a pitcher. He was an All-State basketball player. By comparison, he won just two games in his high school baseball career.
"When I was drafted (at age 18), I probably had pitched less than 100 innings my whole life. I came into professional baseball very raw as a pitcher," he said. "I was far from being some kind of Texas phenom. I guess I was saving my arm."
Lowe scoffed at the notion of today's high-pressure youth sports, kids playing year round, going from travel team to school team to travel team, many playing more than 100 games each year.
"I have a son who is seven now. And I'll never let him do what the kids do today at that age. It becomes a job for the kids, and they just burn out, or their arms burn out," he said. "I don't think my son will be a major league player, just like my dad didn't think I'd be one, either. But you at least have to give him a chance."
Lowe believes now that he can pitch -- and pitch well -- deep into his 40's. He has started this spring right where he left off in the fall, coming off one of the best months of his career.
He was the National League pitcher of the month when he went 5-0 with a 1.17 ERA in September. During that stretch, he struck out 29 and walked just three, finding a command of his pitches that surprised even him.
"You feel like as long as you don't make any changes, you should be able to pick up where you left off," he said. "That gives you confidence because you know you just did it a few months before."
Lowe will be making his third spring start on Thursday against the Cardinals, expecting to begin adding a breaking pitch to his routine. In his first two starts, he threw only his fastball, sinker and a few changeups. He won both games, giving up just two hits and no runs in five innings combined.
"The older you get, the smarter you have to work. I'm doing things differently now at 37 than I did at 27," he said. "But I also don't think anyone looks at me and says
