TGR: How is the pressure different in L.A. than Boston?

DL: It was a different type of pressure in Boston. But I think pressure comes if you’re not prepared.

TGR: Do you ever miss the American League?

DL: I’ll tell you what, I like National League baseball. It keeps you in the game. If you can actually hit it helps. You know, learn how to bunt. In the American League, especially playing with the Red Sox, it was like a softball league. We just tried to hit three-run homeruns every at-bat.

TGR: You get much heat from the fans in L.A.?

DL: The thing about it is, they can never, ever write anything, or say anything, like they did in Boston. I’ll tell you what, if you’ve never been booed, or had bad things said about you, then you go to a big market? It’s a culture shock. But when you’ve been a part of it. I mean, to have someone tell me that I suck? C’mon.

TGR: Get original, buddy.

DL: Yeah, “Lowe sucks,” all right, let’s move on.

TGR: When all those microphones are in your face, do you ever wanna just bitch-slap them away?

DL: I just get annoyed when people ask the same stupid question over and over again. You answer it, then they try to ask you another question, reverse it in a different direction to try to get you to say something, especially about teammates. That shit drives me crazy.

TGR: Let’s get back to the sucking. What changed between your 2001-2002 seasons?

DL: You can keep going, 2003 and onward and upward. Actually, you’re talking about 2001 when I was a reliever?

TGR: Yeah. Why did they convert you back to a starter?

DL: Because I sucked. Honest to God. I pitched so poorly in the first two months they went and got Ugi Urbina. And then, Joe Kerrigan was the manager and I asked him if I could get back to starting. Then I worked my tail off in the off-season, you know, gained 25 pounds, of the good weight.

TGR: The good weight?

DL: The right way. I’ve never failed one of those things. And then, yeah, I wanted to get back to starting. Why did I have success that year? Shit, I have no idea.

TGR: All right. Good weight?

DL: Yeah, the steroid tests. Never failed one.

TGR: Congratulations. Hopefully you’ll keep that record perfect.

DL: That’s my goal.

TGR: Do you get extremely bored between starts?

DL: Extremely. I golf a lot. You know what, it depends on how you’re pitching. If you’re pitching great, the four days in between, you’re having a great time. If you’re pitching like shit…

TGR: You can’t wait to get back out there and crack it.

DL: Yeah. When you’re pitching terrible, for four days, you’re miserable, you’re trying to fix what you’ve been doing wrong. But when you’re going good, the four days in between, you’re on cloud nine. A lot of it depends on your teammates. If you’re on a good team, you never get bored.

TGR: What kind of stuff do you do to keep it light?

DL: Just make a lot of jokes. You can’t have an uptight clubhouse. Like I said, I’m very laid back, care-free, goofy guy, so I try to…you know, I don’t do practical jokes on people, because they get pissed-off, but I just do stupid shit throughout the day, to lighten up the mood. I mean, you’re here seven, or eight, hours a day, you can’t be all tense and serious.

TGR: Talk to me about the Zone?

DL: The Zone. When you get locked in…

TGR: When you get locked in.

DL: The Zone….The biggest thing that I’ve ever been taught is your preparation. You work your tail off for four days in between, you study your opponent, you get the right amount of sleep. And that day, your mind is free, so you can kinda get locked in on what your agenda is. If you kind of half-ass your workouts, and you don’t prepare, when you get out there, the last thing you’re thinking about is pitching. You know, you have all kinds of negative thoughts. But the feeling, the Zone, you don’t notice anything, you know what I mean? You don’t notice the fans, you don’t notice what people are saying. When you look back you probably don’t even remember a lot of at-bats, because you’re just so focused. And then when you’re going bad, you know what people look like in the tenth row, what they’ve been saying about ya, what song they played in the third inning. Your mind is completely off from what you’re supposed to be thinking about.

TGR: Do you listen to music before your games?

DL: Yeah. Techno.

TGR: Techno?

DL: Yeah, I listen to country off the field, and then techno…Techno before the game gets the boys all excited.

TGR: What do you think of Tommy Lasorda?

DL: He talks a lot.

TGR: We knew that.

DL: He’s passionate about the Dodgers.

TGR: Does this generation of players listen to him?

DL: Um….

TGR: (Laughter)

DL: This generation of players is completely different. They understand kind of what happened before. But I think the majority of people, don’t really care.

TGR: That’s sad, isn’t it?

DL: It is. It’s kind of the Just-Worry-About-Yourself Generation. You know what I mean? It’s just a different game. People are getting in the major leagues younger, they’re getting paid a lot of money earlier…I don’t know if it’s changed for the better though.

TGR: What do you think of owner Frank McCourt?

DL: You’re asking me? Dude, he gave me a four-year deal at $36 million. He’s the best owner in all of baseball.

TGR: At least for the next year or so.

DL: Exactly.

TGR: What about the latest report that Major League pitchers are out of shape?

DL: Who we talking about? Are there any individuals?

TGR: No. But they did some study, and I think they were talking smack about 50% of the pitchers.

DL: What was the testing?

TGR: I don’t even know.

DL: Drink beer and run two miles under ten minutes?

TGR: I think that was the one. Have you participated in it?

DL: You know what? I haven’t got asked yet.

TGR: All-time favorite baseball player?

DL: Alan Trammell, shortstop Detroit Tigers. I grew up watching him. Growing up in Michigan, me and Eminem.

TGR: Together, right?

DL: Together.

TGR: Rapping it down.

DL: You got it.

*

Liked it? Then check out The Gospel of Zito.