ALLENTOWN - The Phillies demoted Adam Loewen to double A in May. The former first-round pick had turned 31 a month earlier. He had not pitched in the big leagues in seven seasons. Now Loewen could not even hang at triple A.
"It was a wake-up call," Loewen said.
Loewen had walked 20 batters in 171/3 innings before being sent to Reading. His low point was a 19-pitch outing in which he threw just three strikes. The pitcher's mission was to simply throw strikes.
Loewen was tinkering with his mechanics before a game against Altoona with Rafael Chavez, the organization's pitching coordinator.