By Annie Dankelson | Photos by SUE OGROCKI/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK; UPI/ALAMY LIVE NEWS
Whether fans were rooting for the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Tampa Bay Rays or just for an entertaining 2020 World Series, one thing was certain from the outset: A Terp would be hoisting the trophy.
October’s Fall Classic was the first to feature two former UMD players competing against each other: Dodgers relief pitcher Adam Kolarek and Rays second baseman Brandon Lowe. Their teams battled it out through six games at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, capping a COVID-shortened MLB season.
Kolarek and the Dodgers came out on top, making the left-hander the fourth Terp to win a World Series championship. But both players provided plenty of highlights on their journeys from College Park to baseball’s biggest stage.
QUICK HITS
MARYLAND STATS
Kolarek: 5-6 record, 5.03 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 111 innings from 2008-10
Lowe: .338 batting average, 10 home runs and 95 RBIs over 120 games from 2014-15
2020 REGULAR-SEASON HIGHLIGHTS
Kolarek: Led qualified Dodgers pitchers with a 0.95 ERA over 19 innings
Lowe: Paced Rays’ offense with a team-high 14 homers and 37 RBIs
TOP WORLD SERIES MOMENT
Kolarek: Struck out Lowe swinging in first-ever Terp vs. Terp World Series at-bat
Lowe: After a two-homer Game 2, launched three-run, go-ahead shot in wild Game 4 that Rays won, 8-7
EXTRA INNINGS
Kolarek: His dad, Frank Kolarek, also played baseball at Maryland as a catcher from 1974-75 and competed in the Oakland Athletics’ minor league system.
Lowe: After placing third in the American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2019, he came in eighth in last season’s AL Most Valuable Player Award ranking.
Read about the UMD Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism’s virtual panel of Kolarek, Lowe and ESPN baseball analyst Tim Kurkjian ’78 at today.umd.edu.
