Tuesday, September 15, 2010-
With a workman-like performance last night at Turner Field, Derek Lowe nailed down his twentieth victory, becoming the first pitcher to win 20 in GABA this season. Lowe used 113 pitches in 6.1 innings, giving up 7 hits, 4 walks, 2 runs and 7 strikeouts to beat Washington by a 5-2 score.
"Derek is the kind of pitcher who knows how to win even when his stuff isn't quite as sharp," said manager Bobby Cox. "He knows how to battle out of difficulty. He showed that again tonight."
"Wasn't the prettiest game I ever pitched," Lowe said afterwards, "but any win, especially a 20th, is nice looking to me."
After losing his first chance at 20 to the Rockies (6-1) in Colorado last Wednesday, Lowe had five days of rest before his next opportunity at the milestone win. Rookie Freddie Freeman staked Lowe to a 3-0 lead with his 17th homerun in the fourth inning after Washington rookie sensation Stephen Strasburg (11-12).
"The way Strasburg was pitching early, I didn't know if we were gonna get any runs," Lowe chuckled. "Freddie's blow sure took some pressure off. I sure didn't want to stretch this thing out 'til my next start."
Lowe now has 20 wins against 5 losses for the season with a 2.50 ERA over 205.1 innings pitched, leading the NL in each of those categories.
