Projo Sox Blog

BY JOE McDONALD
Journal Sports Writer

NEW YORK -- Mike Lowell arrived at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday and declared himself "painfree."

While the Red Sox traveled to Baltimore and Toronto on this current road trip, Lowell returned home to Miami to continue to rehab his oblique injury. He began throwing three days ago and will hit off the tee on Wednesday.

"I think (trainer) Mike Reinold was very happy with the progress that was made in Florida," Lowell said. "I'm really excited. For the last four days I've been able to do normal daily activity, and it hasn't bothered me at all."

Lowell worked out at Yankee Stadium Tuesday, using heavy medicine balls and reported no setbacks.

If everything continues to progress, Lowell will take some soft toss on Thursday and may be able to hit in the cage in the next few days.

"Mike's doing real well," said Francona.

Lowell said he's been pushing to get back sooner, but he also realizes he can't rush it.

"I don't want to come back and take one violent swing and back track," he said. "It's all positive."

It's not just the oblique that's a concern for Lowell. He's been bothered with a hip flexor for much of the season, and he admitted Tuesday that it's "so-so" and he'll continue to play through the discomfort and wait until the offseason to deal with it.

"I thought the time off would make it feel better, but I'm not sure we've done that," he said.

When he first injured his oblique it was obvious he was very concerned about it. Now that he's back from Florida, Lowell a lot more optimistic.

"When you take a deep breath or you cough and it hurts, it makes you feel like you're a long way from taking a baseball swing," he said. "I think I did the rehab exactly the way they asked me to do it. We've got some games left, some crucial games and I want to be a part of that. From a week ago, my mindset is a lot different."

 Tags  Mike Lowell Red Sox

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