Tampa Bay Rays Outfielder Josh Lowe Hopeful to Play Opening Day Following Hip Injury
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Josh Lowe told reporters that he remains confident he will be healthy in time for Opening Day, the Tampa Bay Times' Marc Topkin relayed Tuesday morning.
Lowe was shut down with left hip inflammation on Feb. 29. The 26-year-old was ruled out of Grapefruit League play for 10-to-15 days.
The Rays' medical staff is set to re-evaluate Lowe on Tuesday, though, and he says his hip is already feeling better. He also told the media that he could resume baseball activities within the next few days.
Lowe had appeared in two Spring Training exhibitions prior to his injury. He was 2-for-3 with a walk and a double, most recently taking the field Feb. 27 against the New York Yankees.
Last season, Lowe hit .292 with 20 home runs, 83 RBI, 32 stolen bases, an .835 OPS and a 3.7 WAR across 135 games. FanGraphs' ZiPS projections have Lowe on track to hit .259 with 16 home runs, 66 RBI, 25 stolen bases, a .758 OPS and a 2.7 WAR in 132 games in 2024.
Lowe made his MLB debut in 2021, but he only made two appearances that season. By the time he was called back up in 2022, MLB Pipeline had the former first round pick ranked as the No. 2 prospect in Tampa Bay's farm system and the No. 50 prospect in all of baseball.
Tampa Bay's second and third most regular right fielders in 2023, Manuel Margot and Luke Raley, were traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners, respectively, earlier this offseason. That could lead to more at-bats for Lowe, assuming he remains healthy, although the Rays did acquire top prospect Jonny DeLuca from the Dodgers in exchange for Margot and Tyler Glasnow.
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