Lowe puts trade rumors in the past

Four weeks ago, Derek Lowe was so sure he was going to be traded that he told MLB.com: "I'm just waiting for it to happen. I don't think it's a matter of 'if' anymore. It's just a matter of when."

He also said if he had known the Braves might trade him one year into his four-year contract, he never would have signed with them.

A week after those comments, the Braves traded one of their two 15-game winners of 2009. Only it was Javier Vazquez, not Lowe.

They tried to trade Lowe, but no team would do it without Atlanta picking up a large portion of the $45 million he's owed over the remaining three seasons of his $60 million contract.

They turned to Plan B and traded Vazquez, coming off a terrific season and with one season ($11.5 million) left before free agency.

Vazquez was traded to the Yankees for outfielder Melky Cabrera, lefty reliever Mike Dunn and righty Arodys Vizcaino, 19, the Yankees' No. 3 prospect.

The trade didn't sit well with some Braves fans, who hated losing Vazquez after such a fine season (15-10, 2.87 ERA, 238 strikeouts) and especially without getting a power hitter in return.

The Braves used some of the money saved to sign slugger Troy Glaus for first base and versatile backup Eric Hinske.

Now the question: Whither Lowe? Will the 36-year-old pitcher come to camp with a chip on his shoulder?

"Absolutely not," Lowe said by phone from his home in Fort Myers, Fla., explaining that his comments were born of worries that he might be traded to a bad team or city.

"When you're a year into a four-year deal -- obviously when you're going through the free-agent process you pick a place you want to go, you do all that homework, you get there, find a place," he said.

"That was the frustrating part, you find a place you like, [but] Atlanta gives no no-trade clauses. ... That had everything to do with [his comments last month]. It was nothing with not liking Atlanta. Look at it any way you want, but it was just that I wanted to stay."

He was 15-10 with a 4.67 ERA in 2009, and his .301 opponents' average was second-worst in the majors among starters.

Lowe said he has worked to fix his pitching mechanics, poring over video and working on a portable mound at home. He sounded pleasant and optimistic when a reporter called.

Asked if the trade stuff was water under the bridge, he said, "There was really no water in the bridge anyway," adding that general manager Frank Wren called a day before the Vazquez trade to update Lowe.

"Really, it's an absolute non-issue I think with everybody," Lowe said. "I talked to Frank. It really wasn't like there was anything to mend, just a situation where you didn't want to get traded."

Lowe acknowledged what he called his 2009 "failure" and said it would be wrong to ignore or act like his season went fine and that he didn't need to do anything differently this winter.

But he also said his 15-win season wasn't as bad as some portrayed.

Lowe's agent, Scott Boras, said Lowe had a few bad starts but an otherwise solid season. The fact is, Lowe didn't pitch seven or eight quality innings in nearly as many games as expected, and for roughly half the season he wasn't a top-shelf pitcher.

Boras was correct, though, in saying that three starts spiked his ERA. Lowe gave up seven earned runs in 2-1/3 innings on June 14 at Baltimore, eight runs (six earned) in three innings June 25 vs. the Yankees, and eight earned runs in 3-2/3 innings Aug. 18 against the Mets.

That's 21 earned runs in nine innings over three starts. In his other 31 starts, Lowe was 15-7 with a 3.88 ERA.

Hinske is a former American League Rookie of the Year who never developed into the star many thought he would be. Instead, he has carved a career as a energetic backup and positive influence in the clubhouse.