Maryland Baseball Alum Brandon Lowe Has Monster Opening Weekend for New Club
One Maryland baseball alum found himself on the move during the MLB offseason, but it didn't take him long to make a statement with his new club.
The Pittsburgh Pirates made several additions in an effort to bolster their lineup, including trading with the Tampa Bay Rays for second baseman Brandon Lowe. With it being a contract year for Lowe, they're clearly expecting him to help them win now.
During the club's opening series at Citi Field, he did his part and then some.
In his first game with the Black and Gold, Lowe pounced on the first pitch he saw, sneaking a home run down into the first row in right field to give the Bucs an early 2-0 lead over the Mets.
FIRST HOMER OF THE SEASON GOES TO BRANDON LOWE! pic.twitter.com/JoA4yn1Bss
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 26, 2026
Two innings later, Lowe took Mets' starter Freddy Peralta deep again, this time depositing a ball into the visitors' bullpen.
Having some déjà vu...another one for B-Lowe! pic.twitter.com/KamjiGYhhj
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 26, 2026
His performance during Saturday's game was a quieter 1-for-5, but he picked his pace back up during the Sunday finale. In the third inning, Lowe unloaded on a high fastball for his third home run in as many games - something the vet hadn't done since four in a row April 8-11, 2023.
three homers in three games for Brandon Lowe! pic.twitter.com/do5TsAdxAH
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 29, 2026
He'd also add a double and two walks as the Pirates finally got in the win column, salvaging an extra-inning victory in Queens.
Overall, Lowe finished the opening weekend with a .417 AVG, 1.750 OPS, and four RBI. It's a small sample size but encouraging nonetheless for those hoping of a repeat of last year's 31 HR, 83 RBI campaign.
Lowe slashed .331/.436/.542 with nine homers, 18 2B, and 53 RBI in his final Terps season, leading him to be selected in the third round of the 2015 MLB Draft.
Since then, he's enjoyed two All-Star nods, a trip to the 2020 World Series, and an early six-year, $24 million contract that bought out his arbitration years.
Next up for the Pirates is a trip to Cincinatti for a three-game series with the Reds. After that, Lowe and co. will have their home opener Friday against the Baltimore Orioles.
Other Terps in the Show:
- Matt Shaw will be seeing a lot of Lowe now that they are division rivals. Shaw was moved to right field after the Chicago Cubs signed Alex Bregman to play his old third base spot. He went 1-for-6 with a sac fly and RBI in the first two games, then sat out Sunday.
- Sean Burke continues to pitch for the other Chicago club. In his first start of the season for the White Sox, Burke allowed three runs on seven hits to the Milwaukee Brewers over four innings. He also walked one batter and struck out five.
- LaMonte Wade Jr. could join Burke on the Southside sometime this season; the outfielder began the year with their AAA team in Charlotte.
- José Cuas may also appear in the AL Central this year; the reliever is currently with Kansas City's AAA affiliate in Omaha.
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Mike joined Maryland On SI with over four years of sportswriting experience. He started off his career in Syracuse on the Orange football beat, where he was featured on CBS Sports' Cover 3 Podcast and local ESPN sports talk radio. After that, he had a brief stint reporting on Major League Baseball before returning to college sports.
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