The Boston Herald's Jeff Horrigan is reporting that there's a good chance Mike Lowell will end up on the DL after being being pulled from the game last night. It's believed that he suffered a strained right oblique during his final at-bat yesterday. Whether or not he actually gets shelved will be decided by the outcome of this morning's MRI.

Suddenly, the Rays don't look quite so banged up. If Lowell is forced to the DL (something he views only as his final option), the Sox will likely shift Youk over to third and have Casey man first. Horrigan sees Pawtucket's Joe Thurston getting called up to replace Lowell on the roster and he doesn't rule out the possibility of the Sox getting some veteran assistance on the waiver wire.

Either way, a few days off (or the full 15-day stretch) should end up being a useful respite for Lowell, who's also battling a lingering hip flexor injury.

In other Sox injury news, Horrigan believes Lugo won't be back before September 1st. With Lowrie performing better offensively and defensively, we're in no rush to see Lugo back out there anytime soon.