Starter turned outfielder turned reliever Adam Loewen back in MLB
Starter turned outfielder turned reliever Adam Loewen is finally back in the big leagues. The Phillies are planning to call the lefty up on Friday.
Adam Loewen is back in the big leagues, once again as a pitcher. The Phillies are bringing the southpaw back to MLB on Friday, reports MLB.com's Todd Zolecki.
Prior to the 2004 season, Baseball America ranked Loewen as the 13th best prospect in baseball, when he was a starting pitcher. He then pitched to a 5.38 ERA (85 ERA+) in 164 innings with the Orioles from 2006-08 while battling numerous elbow injuries.
So, with his elbow continually acting up, Loewen decided to give up pitching and become a position player. Here he is talking about the transition to the outfield:
Loewen played in the minors with the Blue Jays and Mets from 2009-13. Toronto did call him up briefly in 2011, and Loewen went 6 for 32 (.188) in 14 games. He did not earn another call up in 2012 or 2013.
The position player thing wasn't working out -- Loewen hit .282/.363/.473 in 202 Triple-A games, which wasn't enough to force the issue -- so last year Loewen decided to try pitching again.
Loewen signed a rare two-year minor league contract with the Phillies prior to the 2014 season and had a 3.26 ERA with 84 strikeouts and 60 walks in 19 starts and 113 1/3 innings last year, mostly at Double-A.
The Phillies moved Loewen to the bullpen this season and he has a 2.01 ERA with 73 strikeouts and 37 walks in 58 1/3 innings at mostly Triple-A. He's holding left-handed batters to a .192/.330/.231 batting line with 37 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances (38.9 percent).
That performance was good enough to earn Loewen, who is still only 31, another trip to the big leagues. He was an MLB starter from 2006-08, an MLB outfielder briefly in 2011, and now he'll be an MLB reliever in 2015. That's quite a ride.
