Mike Lowell

Mike Lowell will be honored tonight by the Boston Red Sox with "Thanks, Mike Night", as we say goodbye to the consummate professional after 13 remarkable seasons. Lowell has announced that he will retire at the end of this season.

It's been a tumultuous year for the once slick-fielding third baseman. Lowell has been on the verge of being granted his outright release multiple times throughout the season, and has had to endure being relegated to the bench for the first time in his career.

With the 2010 regular season coming to a close and the playoff picture starting to become a little clearer every day, there are some teams that will focus on free agency and which players they are going to bring back or which players they could possibly land this offseason.

One of those players that will hit the free agent market is third baseman Adrian Beltre, who seemed to reinvent himself this season as a member of the Boston Red Sox.

Amid intensifying trade negotiations for Florida Marlin Jorge Cantu, the Texas Rangers have reportedly lost interest in Boston third baseman Mike Lowell, according to Gordon Edes of ESPNBoston.com.

Texas' fluctuating interest in Boston's oft-injured backup third baseman has been well documented, and this writer most recently covered it in another article primarily dealing with Detroit's reported interest in Lowell.

The Detroit Tigers are looking to acquire Boston backup third baseman Mike Lowell to temporarily replace the injured Brandon Inge, according to Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.

Inge had been hitting .263 with a .755 OPS and was wielding a decent glove before landing on the disabled list for six weeks with a broken hand.

While Lowell is still owed a little less than $5 million this year and has spent most of the season languishing on the DL, he represents one of the most affordable short-term fixes at the hot corner currently on the market.

After dealing Justin Smoak and his right-handed bat for Cliff Lee, the Texas Rangers may have increased interest in reviving an offseason trade for Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell, according to WEEI Sportsradio Network's Rob Bradford.

Both Smoak's departure and corner-infielder Chris Davis' offensive struggles may force the American League West leaders to acquire a player of Lowell's caliber to at least platoon with the likes of Davis.

As we inch closer and closer to Major League Baseball's trade deadline at the end of July, the rumors will start flying fast and furious.

There have already been a few rumors shot down in the last few weeks, including one that was about to send an ace to a team that wouldn't have any way of picking up his remaining salary because of their financial trouble.

Why some of these rumors get started is beyond me, but that's what makes baseball, and the trade deadline, fun.

Mlbtraderumors. com reports that the Twins and Rangers are the two teams rumored to be most interested in acquiring Mike Lowell from the Red Sox.  Makes sense to me.

April baseball rarely provides a clear window into the state of the game by October.

Teams that struggle to find their way early on suddenly become high-powered contenders late in the season, and those who lead their respective divisions in the first month rarely sustain that dominance into the sixth.

However, while 20 or so games may not be enough time to accurately predict a team's path through the season, it is plenty of time to notice trends.

The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are trending poorly.

With all of the movement in the AL West—big trades, free agent signings, and the los

Red Sox manager Terry Francona currently faces two questions that are in essence one and the same; how much longer can he, in good conscience, continue to write David Ortiz's name into the lineup each day, and how much longer can he not write Jeremy Hermida's name into that lineup?

In a poll currently running on Boston.com, 77 percent of respondents have said they think Red Sox manager Terry Francona should be utilizing 3B Mike Lowell as designated hitter.

At the outset, let me start by stating that the Boston.com poll is flawed. The site gave voters only two responses (play Ortiz, play Lowell) when there are really three options available—Tito also has the choice of platooning the two depending on whether a right-hander or left-hander is the starting pitcher for the opposing team.