| In the interest of speed and timeliness, this story is fed directly from the Associated Press newswire and may contain spelling or grammatical errors. |
MIAMI (AP) All-Star third baseman Mike Lowell was back in the Florida Marlins' lineup for his first postseason start Friday in place of slumping rookie Miguel Cabrera.
Lowell was activated from the disabled list last Sunday after sitting out four weeks with a broken left hand. He went 1-for-4 in the final game of the regular season but didn't start or bat in the first two playoff games against San Francisco.
Lowell has acknowledged that his hand is less than 100 percent, but he said he was ready to start. Cabrera went 0-for-8 with four strikeouts in the first two playoff games and made two shaky defensive plays.
``It was a tough decision,'' manager Jack McKeon said. ``I thought about it all night and talked to my coaches about it. It was a consensus that, hey, Mike was ready. He was a big factor in our push to get here. And Miguel had a little tough time the first two games. This might be a good time to give him a breather.''
Despite missing 32 games, Lowell led the Marlins this season with 32 home runs and 105 RBIs.
``He gives the Marlins more stature and a better defensive guy at third base,'' Giants manager Felipe Alou said. ``Even if he doesn't hit because of his hand, they're a better team with him.''