Lowenstein gives UCI dose of toughness

UC Irvine junior catcher Aaron Lowenstein, like any smart athlete, said he listens to his body. He just doesn’t see its point.

So when the pain, however dull or sharp, prompts daily reports to his brain of further damage incurred by blocking pitches, being hit by pitches, or merely squatting for the better part of four hours, Lowenstein politely takes a message, then mentally files it under receipts for the price of winning baseball games.

“I want to win at all costs,” said the two-year starter, whom Coach Dave Serrano calls the unsung hero of a 43-15-1 squad that meets host Wichita State (53-20) today at 9 a.m. in the first of a three-game Super Regional series, from which the winner will advance to the College World Series. “I’ll do anything I have to. I’ll run into a brick wall if I have to.”

Some would and have argued that no player has to run into a brick wall. Lowenstein, who first donned catcher’s gear as a 9-year-old little leaguer, and has been caking dirt on his uniform ever since, said coaches throughout his career have tried to explain “the fine line between being aggressive and crazy.”

Lowie, as he is know by his teammates, nods politely at such advice, then goes out and hurtles himself horizontally at any foul popup that doesn’t clear the backstop screen.

So thorough is his lack of regard for his own bodily welfare, he began a pregame team ritual of taking what have come to be known as ‘chest doses.”

“I take pride in taking doses [getting hit by balls pitched from teammates and adversaries alike] and not moving out of the way,” Lowenstein said. “I feel like my teammates feed off that and I take pride in being a scrapper-type guy, who will do anything to help the team.”

So what of these chest doses?

“It’s kind of a thing I always did in high school,” said Lowenstein, a four-year varsity performer and three-year team captain at Calabasas High. “A lot of times when [the Anteaters] are stretching before away games, the other team is taking batting practice. My freshman year, I think we were at [Cal State] Northridge and a fly ball came heading toward our team stretching in the outfield. People were yelling ‘Heads up,’ and I stood up and took it off the chest. Everybody was like ‘What are you doing?’ But from there on out, we’ve called those chest doses and everyone tries to take one whenever they can.

“There are certain things you can do to get the team fired up. If that means taking a fly ball off the chest, I’ll do it.”

Lowenstein, of course, does quite a bit more for the Anteaters than raise welts.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder is hitting .314, up 68 points from last season. He has also produced career-best single-season totals in RBIs (20), runs (22) and stolen bases (10). His 13 sacrifice hits are nearing last year’s total (19), which ranked 19th in the nation, making him yet another valuable cog in Serrano’s small ball approach.

But offensive production only covers part of the equation when it comes to Lowenstein, who has played in 52 games and started 42 behind the plate.

He has thrown out 20 of 36 runners attempting to steal (an impressive 55.6%) and his ability to block pitches in the dirt, most often taking them off the chest protector, has made him nearly impenetrable this season. His .992 fielding percentage ranks second on the team.

“I’ve always looked at the catcher position as the quarterback of the defense,” Serrano said. “I don’t think the catcher ever gets enough credit when the pitching staff and the defense are successful. I thought he was the MVP on last year’s team. And, this year, you see the steadiness with which he has handled what was an inexperience pitching staff and how they have come along slowly during the course of the season, and it’s no surprise to me why [the pitchers] are having success.

“And along with the pitching staff, he has virtually shut down our opponents’ running game. We gave up the fewest stolen bases of any team in the Big West Conference.”

The Anteaters, in fact allowed just 24 steals this season, nearly 30 fewer than the average allowed by seven other Big West teams.

Serrano also praised the offensive development of the 2006 Anteaters’ Most Improved Player.

“He’s a good fit in our lineup with the other weapons we have around him. But he’s become a weapon too,” Serrano said. “He’s driving in runs and he’s a great situational hitter. He can play the inside game with the sacrifice bunt, he’s great on the hit and run and he moves the ball around.”

Lowenstein, who received honorable mention in the all-conference voting, said his offensive improvement is merely a matter of experience. He went three for 10 with an RBI in the Anteaters’ three victories in the regional at Round Rock, Texas, and was named the all-tournament catcher. But its defense he relishes most.

“Sometimes, when a runner gets on, I want them to try to steal, just because I want to throw them out,” Lowenstein said. “I love throwing guys out and I’m confident I’ll throw them out almost every time. I’ve worked hard at it and I’ve been blessed with a strong arm.”

Wichita State has 131 stolen bases this season, just three fewer than the school-record total produced by the Anteaters. It’s a stat of which Lowenstein is well aware.

“That’s exciting, beautiful,” he said of the impending challenge provided by the Shockers’ aggression on the base paths. “Bring it on. If I get a good pitch to throw on, I’m not worried.”

Lowenstein, who aspires to play professionally, said he would love to become a high school or college coach when his career ends.

“I love to be around the game,” said Lowenstein, who is already tutoring a few of his younger Calabasas natives, and, as per the wishes of Calabasas High Coach and former American League Cy Young Award winner Bret Saberhagen, annually works with the school’s catchers in the fall. “I’ve learned so much, I love to pass it along to the younger guys.”

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at [email protected].