OAKLAND - Jed Lowrie slowly trudged across the A's clubhouse, his left leg heavily wrapped. It has been nearly a month since his scary collision with Stephen Piscotty at AT&T Park, but he has still not fully recovered.
"I haven't been able to do the lower body work that has made me successful," Lowrie said. "I need to build that leg strength back up."
Lowrie went 0-for-3 with a walk in Tuesday's loss to the Dodgers, and is now just 3 for his last 32. His batting average has dropped from .289 to .265 since the July 13 collision. Lowrie only missed one start with a left leg contusion, but he acknowledged that it has affected him at the plate.
"Yeah, of course. I generate a lot of my bat speed from my lower body. But I've hit a lot of balls hard lately and had zero luck. The numbers bear that out, if you look at the exit velocity on some of the balls I've hit."
Lowrie is not wrong, and that type of luck tends to even out over the course of a season. In manager Bob Melvin's mind, there is no major cause for concern.
"I think it's more just (the ups and downs of the season)," Melvin said. "He was so hot for awhile in the first half, then went through a tough period and got through it, and swung the bat well. I think it's just more kind of the way the season goes up and down some."
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Despite the drop in batting average, Lowrie has maintained a high on-base percentage, falling just 14 points from .360 to .346 since the injury. But the power numbers are down significantly. Lowrie has just one home run and two doubles since July 13. The good news is that he feels like he is making progress.
"I'm at the point where I can do some of those things I've done to keep my legs strong," Lowrie said. "I want to start doing those things and hopefully everything responds well."
