Derek Lowe talks Red Sox’ 2004 ALCS comeback vs Yankees and World Series sweep of Cardinals, the Dodgers’ dominance, Banana Ball, and more

I also asked about the Los Angeles Dodgers' dominance, the biggest change the MLB has seen since his pitching days, the modern state of the Sawx, and a topic I almost instantly regretted but had to ask about anyway: the rapid rise of Banana Ball.

On what it was like to get the start in Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS at Yankee Stadium…

“You'd much rather play than watch … I mean, Game 5 and Game 6, not be able to have any say as an athlete, it's more nerve-racking. But when you actually get to playing it, you're excited. It was an opportunity that, obviously, I never got before, and you kind of figured you never had the opportunity again. And to do it against New York … It was 365 days of just amazing baseball going back to 2003. We thought we had Game 7. They brought the champagne into the locker room…

“We all know how that ended. And then to lose Game 3 against the Yankees, 19-8, in ‘04, you just never thought you would get to Game 7. I know a lot of people say it's cliché, one game at a time, but, in the back of your mind, you're thinking, ‘How are we going to beat this team three days, three games in a row?’ It was just an opportunity that I really tried to cherish…

“I'm not gonna lie to you, we got off to a 6-0 lead through two innings, so that definitely helped. Johnny Damon had an amazing series. Just the history of pitching in Yankee Stadium, thinking of all the great memories…I just tried to enjoy it…

“I know it sounds stupid, but I was a free agent that year, so I knew that was going to be my last year playing for the Red Sox. It was going to be my last time ever pitching against the Yankees (for Boston). So there was a lot of incentive to go out there and pitch well. But yeah, that was the longest day of my life…The day of the game, everyone wakes up early, and you're just pacing around, and you're trying not to have negative thoughts. But once you get there and kind of get the feel, the crowd was amazing, and we just had so much momentum…

“It's so crazy how three days change the whole thing. If you saw the locker room after Game 3, you probably never thought in a million years we would be able to pull it off. It's just confidence. You know, did we win it or did they choke? I have no idea. They had four or five guys hitting .400 through the first three games of the series, and we gave Jason Varitek a lot of credit. He saw a few things that maybe we could make a few adjustments here and there, pitch differently. And at that point, you must also try anything. And so he had a lot to do with it…

“I've rewatched the series, I can't tell you how many times. There have been so many documentaries about it. The big hits David Ortiz had throughout the series were incredible. To think it was what, 22 years ago, it was crazy.”

On what it was like to get the start in Game 4 of the World Series against the Cardinals…

“I live in Boston now, and you still cruise around town … people still remember (2004). The majority of it, a lot of people actually, it's funny…they don’t truly remember who we played in the World Series. Likewise, I don't really have a lot of memories against St. Louis. It was just the Yankees rivalry; it was a lot more intense back in the day. You had, what, five, eight, nine future Hall of Famers playing between both teams? There was exceptional baseball…

“And there was a little bit more of a rivalry, a little more of a hatred towards one another. The ‘Who's your daddy?’ with Pedro, the fights in the regular season…So there was just a lot of emotion going into it. I truly believe, now living in New England, if you had won the World Series and beat anybody else in the ALCS, I don't know if people would actually consider it a true World Series win. In this area, you had to go through New York to really justify it. I think being down 3-0, it really made it that much more special.”

On being in a legendary rotation with Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield, and Bronson Arroyo…

“It started, obviously, with Pedro. I think I played with him for five or six years, and you get to see him every five days. That was something special. He was just an amazing guy, especially in the locker room. A great leader. We had been together, the majority of us, for five or six years, the core group, and we kind of added pieces throughout…

“The thing that we took pride in, especially given today's age of baseball. All five of us, Pedro, Schilling, Wake, myself, and Bronson Arroyo, none of us missed a start all year. None of us was on the DL. We all made our starts. I don't know if that'll ever happen again…

“We took pride in taking the ball every five days, good or bad. That builds massive chemistry, and we were all totally different. We had Schilling and Pedro as power guys, me and Bronson, more finesse, and then we had Tim throwing a knuckleball. So we were all kind of a little different…I do a few things with the Red Sox, PR-wise, and it's still fun to reminisce and talk about the good old days, as I say.”

On the Red Sox’ imminent rebuild after firing Alex Cora and five other coaches…

“You're going to need some of these younger kids to mature probably faster…Hopefully, in due time, with free agency, maybe you can add a few guys here and there. They are young, and it's a hard game to play. You need some veteran leadership to kind of show them how to do it. I'm not around enough to really know who's the big voice in the locker room. Garrett Crochet is out right now. Obviously, you hope to get him back healthy…

“Even when you're a veteran, it's a tough game to play. They’re going to have to mature really, really fast. You know, they definitely have the talent, but the AL East is a beast as far as the division goes. You can't coast. Every night within the division's a tough, tough game…They obviously made a massive, massive change about a month ago, letting go of six coaches. Obviously, they believe that's the right way to go. Hopefully, it'll work out.”

On the biggest change the MLB has undergone since his playing days…

“Analytics, analytics, and more analytics. I mean, it's crazy. Every team has it. They have 10 to 15 guys of just analytics, and they break down everything. The launch angle, the spin rate, that stuff didn't even exist back then. You put in a VCR tape back in our day. You had to use the hand dial to rewind and fast-forward. It was more about using your eyes…

“It wasn’t data-driven. You've got some teams where the pitching coach calls every single pitch. I think they're doing it in Miami, which is head-scratching, but they obviously believe it's going to work. I think you had a lot more say. Every single pitch now is critiqued because of what the analytics say. The strike zone is a little bit different … When we played, it was maybe a little bit bigger because we didn't have the K-Zone. But there are certain things I like. I like the pitch clock…I know it's not tradition, starting a guy on second base. But for a team, it really helps. If you go 16 or 17 innings in a game, it depletes your bullpen for two or three days …

“The game is so young. Back in the day, you didn’t have so many 25-year-olds on the team. Now, you look at some of these teams … Look at St. Louis. They’re just so young. That’s the trend, and you just have to accept it. It’s a very, very analytical game. That’s all sports. You can get lost in numbers. You just want pitchers to be as reactionary as possible. I think sometimes data doesn't allow you to do that. You look at a team like Tampa. We just played them. They still bunt … you're not ever ever supposed to bunt. Bunting is one of those things that just no one does anymore. It’s analytically driven…

“But bunting a guy over to third and hitting a sac fly, that's a run. That’s kind of how the game's always been played. I just don’t think you can solely lean on everything as a number. Because there's emotion…It's a very emotional game, and not everyone's the same. We can’t think that we can put everyone in one box and say, ‘Hey, this is how we're going to do it for everyone.’ Telling Pedro and me to do the same thing doesn’t make any sense.”

On the rise of Banana Ball…

“I don't understand it. (Laughs). I can’t even believe you brought it up … I was watching five days ago. They were playing at Texas A&M, and there were 105,000 people there. It went from playing in minor league ballparks to where they are now. They played in Fenway Park twice, and it was sold out. They’ve asked us to play in it, and I’ve said no every time…

“There's no way I'm trying that. I get the gist of it, but boy oh boy, I don't know if it's more popular than our sport. They’re in football stadiums because baseball stadiums aren’t big enough anymore. Kudos to the guy who came up with this. Four years ago, I was like, ‘This is not going to take off.’ But boy oh boy was I wrong…

On if MLB players will play in Banana Ball if there’s a lockout in 2027…

“That's a great question. I'm probably 50/50 right now on whether they're going to strike. We all know the issue is a salary cap. The MLB does an amazing job of really educating the young players. Guys in the 80s and the 90s went on strike, so we can not have a salary cap. I think the players will stand pretty firmly on that…

“I would probably say no, but I mean, that's just my opinion. Hopefully, cooler heads prevail, and they can come up with an agreement because no one wants to watch a stoppage. It's just not good for anybody, but I understand both sides. They think salaries are getting out of control … Players get 49%, owners make 51%. That's for them to figure out, but I hope a lockout doesn’t happen.”

On if the Dodgers would ‘ruin baseball’ with a three-peat…

“I don't think so. I mean, they're just spending. I know it irritates a lot of teams, but they have a formula. They slow-roll guys like Blake Snell. He probably could have come back 10 days ago. They're in no rush. They know their goal is October. They just pace themselves, and they have so much talent. I get it. I mean, Shohei is hitting .230, and no one even really notices it. I get it. I really do…

“I don't think it would ruin baseball. I think, you know, maybe it would motivate some teams to go out and spend, probably not to the extent that the Dodgers are able to. But winning creates money. Dodger Stadium holds 60,000; they sell it out every game. They have marquee players who are bringing in money. Kind of like the Patriots when they kept winning. It’s kind of weird how people hate winners… but they'll be fine.

“I think Dave's kind of figured out how to pace their team. They never panic, and they know they are extremely talented. Mookie Betts just came back. Unfortunately, I think at the end of the day, we're all going to have to watch them again in October. I played there for four years. I loved it out there. They're a great organization. They really believe in winning, and they do everything to win. So you got to give them credit.”

On his American Century Championship prediction…

“Steph Curry … When (the Warriors) got eliminated from the playoffs pretty early, we knew he had a bunch of time to work on his game. He's a phenomenal golfer, and it happened again this year. Joe Pavelski has had a tremendous run. John Smoltz, he's been creeping up the leaderboard…

“But American Century, they’ve done a great job. This will be my 13th year. They've added some really good golfers. I know a lot of people are rooting for Annika Sörenstam, me included. She's gotten close. And I'll throw my name in there. I’d like to think I have a chance. Last year was kind of a struggle, but historically, I've been able to do okay…There's always somebody who can come out of the woodwork; you never know. But I would say Steph, Pavelski, Smoltz, and Mardy Fish are probably pretty close up there.”