Lowe left Saturday's game against the Tigers with a right toe contusion, Tricia Whitaker of Bally Sports Sun reports.
Whitaker reports that it's his big toe that suffered the bruise. The infielder was removed from the contest in favor of Isaac Paredes in what appeared to be a maintenance move after the Rays built up a 8-0 lead, but the Rays announced the injury designation shortly after. For now, Lowe should be considered day-to-day with a good chance of missing Sunday's game and returning for the series against the Nationals.
Lowe went 2-for-2 with a solo home run Thursday in a Grapefruit League game against the Blue Jays.
Lowe is coming off an injury-riddled 2022 season during which he racked up only 266 plate appearances due to a back issue. He's been healthy this spring and has five hits across 15 at-bats, though Thursday's homer was his first extra-base knock. Lowe should be a near everyday player at second base once the regular season begins.
Lowe (back) will serve as Tampa Bay's designated hitter and No. 5 batter in Monday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.
Lowe looks to be at full strength for spring training after back issues as well as a triceps contusion limited him to just 65 games in 2022. The back concerns may have well played a part in Lowe's downturn in production when he was healthy enough to take the field, as he saw his OPS drop to .691 last season after he posted marks of .850 or better in each of the previous three campaigns. Lowe thus looks like an interesting bounce-back candidate for 2023, and though he'll be making his spring debut at DH, he's eventually expected to settle back into a near-everyday role at second base.
