Lowell handles return to third

In a game that had none of the feel of a typical Red Sox-Yankees clash - other than the never-ending first three innings - Lowell returned to the field. And flourished at the plate.

Two pitches into his first at-bat, Lowell blasted a pitch from Chien-Ming Wang to left field for a solo home run. He followed with a single over second base in the second inning.

Penny is smooth in his first spring start. C2

So though he might still be easing his way back into baseball shape after surgery on his hip last October, the third baseman is starting to show signs of his old self. Those are welcome signs for the Sox.

"I felt like I moved around pretty good," Lowell said. "The toughest ball was the first one, a hard kind of in-between hop, stayed with it good. I didn't really think about my hip much playing on the field, so that's what I want to do. I don't want to be thinking, 'If it's hit this way, I've got to do this.' I don't want to compensate or do anything different."

Lowell had gotten a single in three at-bats Tuesday, his first game since the surgery. Last night he took another step.

"He's a huge part of our team, and I was glad to see him back on the field," said starter Tim Wakefield, who gave up four runs in the 8-4 Sox win. "He hit a homer in his first at-bat, which was nice to see. His range was normal, I think, at third base, made a great play for me in the first, a double play. It's very exciting to see him back on the field with us."

Other than the double play in the first, Lowell fielded a routine grounder by Cody Ransom and wasn't able to corral a bending liner by Nady. He felt comfortable, and that's what really mattered.

He'll see how he feels today, how his body reacts to the strain, and he'll likely be in the field every other day for the near future. That has something to do with his rehab, and more perhaps to do with the team's travel schedule.

"We had a couple long innings," Lowell said. "I haven't really stood out there. What gets overlooked a lot is I don't think you can do anything in the offseason to prepare [for] being on your feet in spikes for three hours. You're not just going to stand around. That's what [Jason Varitek] always says: 'I'm not going to stand in the street in spikes and just stand there.' That's somewhat of an adjustment because sometimes your back gets tight."