Dodgers’ Lowe is aiming high

MILWAUKEE — It’s a tried-and-true survival technique for performers of various stripes. Derek Lowe likes to steal a moment of solitude by stepping behind the pitcher’s mound and staring into the sky.

A year ago on opening day, the outlook was clouded by turmoil in his personal life and he got shelled by the Atlanta Braves. Blue skies will be impossible to find today as well, but the reason will be the dome enclosing Miller Park when the Dodgers play the Milwaukee Brewers.

Lowe’s life is in order, he says, and the view is limitless.

“From a personal standpoint, I couldn’t be happier,” he said. “My best years are still ahead. As long as I keep myself in shape and put the team first, I can pitch for a long time.”

A sticky divorce with his wife of eight years was completed in December and Lowe’s relationship with former Fox Sports Net reporter Carolyn Hughes is going on its third year. He sees his three children often and is building a home in Fort Myers, Fla., to remain close to them.

“Time has stabilized everything,” he said. “Now that I’m legally divorced, the kids are happy and I’ve got a good relationship with Carolyn. There is no more wondering, no more lawyers, no more trial dates, no more worrying about what this or that person says.”

A few weeks ago, somebody taped a newspaper article detailing a purported affair between Lowe’s ex-wife and married German soccer star Stefan Effenberg to Lowe’s spring-training locker. He kept it there until the Dodgers left Vero Beach, Fla., as if to validate that there were two sides to the story of his breakup, more to it than the pervasive impression that he and Hughes were home wreckers.

“No one in their right mind would leave their family for a fling,” Lowe said. “Our relationship had nothing to do with either Carolyn or I getting divorces. Those were already in the works. We decided to be with each other and no one broke up anybody’s marriage.”

The turmoil affected his performance in 2005, Lowe’s first year with the Dodgers. He had a 12-15 record and gave up a career-high 28 home runs.

“I got exactly what I deserved that year,” he said. “Mentally, I wasn’t there. You can’t fake happiness. When you are happy, your work shows it. You are a better person for it.”

This will be Lowe’s third opening-day start since he signed a four-year, $36-million contract. He has become the team’s most consistent pitcher, posting an earned-run average of 3.63 last season and 3.61 even amid the tumult of 2005. Except for the two weeks after his five-inning, seven-earned-runs debacle on opening day last year, his ERA has never been higher than 4.29 at any point the last two seasons.

Only Houston’s Roy Oswalt has more victories in the last five years than Lowe’s 80. Is there any reason he shouldn’t win another 80 over the next five years?

“Absolutely not,” said Lowe, who will turn 34 in June. “I love playing the game. I love the competition. As long as I’m an effective starter or closer, I’ll play.”

A friendship with pitcher Greg Maddux, 40, that began when Maddux was acquired by the Dodgers in July extended into the off-season. They played golf often and discussions ranged from career longevity to family obligations to pitching strategies.

“Greg asked me, ‘What’s your goal?,’ ” Lowe said. “He said that his is to execute the next pitch. That’s it. Execute the next pitch. Then the next, and the next.”

Lowe loved the simplicity. No more worrying about personal statistics.

“There’s no better feeling than to win as a team,” he said. “This is my 10th year, and I’ve made the playoffs seven times. I’m proud of that.”

An eighth playoff run has already played itself out in Lowe’s mind. So has another World Series championship, one every bit as exciting as helping the Boston Red Sox to their first title in anyone’s memory in 2004.

Every few days during spring training, he let his imagination overflow with positive outcomes while shadow pitching from a bullpen mound in a remote corner of Dodgertown. He’d go through his windup and pretend to throw pitch after pitch, mentally rehearsing an entire game.

Shadow pitching was as serene as fishing, as tranquil as yoga.

“It reinforces the positives,” he said. “I make up game situations, which pitch I’m going to throw on various counts against certain hitters. Pitchers have to make constant adjustments. You have to be your own coach. You have to know your body and your mechanics. If you wait for the pitching coach to come out to make adjustments, it’s too late.”

Lowe’s demeanor is as deceptive as his trademark sinker. He’s a constant joker in the clubhouse, the kid who never grew up. But coaches say he is self-motivated and a tireless worker between starts.

“People don’t realize how much this guy cares about how he does on the field,” Manager Grady Little said. “He is very driven. But he also knows how to be loose. That’s why he’s done so well in pressure situations. He’s very competitive without overdoing it and becoming his own worst enemy.”

Sometimes motivation increases with age. A pitcher realizes his career won’t last forever, stops taking his natural gifts for granted and starts taking care of his body.

“I’ve always felt that if I prepare myself the way I should, I will have peace of mind regardless of how a game turns out,” Lowe said. “Baseball rewards you that way. If you work hard, it’s easier to accept the bad games. I can look in the mirror and tell myself I did everything I could.”

It means avoiding distractions, controversy and pressure -- three insidious elements that have dogged him in the past. Ironically, the season that ended with his finest hour -- becoming a World Series hero in 2004 -- provided the most life lessons.

Knowing he would become a free agent after the season, Lowe tried to pitch his way to a contract extension the Red Sox had no intention of offering.

“I put too much emphasis on every game, every pitch,” he said. “I was trying to prove something. What, I don’t know.

“Clearly, that didn’t work. Combine that experience with all that’s gone on in my life the last two years, and I should be able to handle just about anything.”

And when he takes a moment between pitches today to stare off into space?

“I’ll remind myself how well everything is going,” he said. “I’ll remind myself life is good.

“Then I’ll try to execute the next pitch.”

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