Mike Lowell is starting over David Ortiz at DH on Monday.

It's going to continue to become a regular occurrence until Big Papi starts hitting. Ortiz is batting just .160 with a .236 on-base percentage and one home run in 50 at-bats this season. Lowell, meanwhile, is hitting .280/.357/.440 in 25 plate appearances with a dinger of his own.

Mike Lowell said he will be in the starting lineup again on Thursday.

"I haven't not felt good, for your double negative, since the last week of the spring," said Lowell, who was 2-for-4 with a home run on Wednesday. "I'm seeing the ball well. When I lay off pitches that are close, I know I'm seeing the ball especially well. I know I did that today and got some good hits and we'll see if we can continue that." Lowell will presumably be the designated hitter against the lefty C.J. Wilson, while the struggling David Ortiz takes a seat.

Mike Lowell is in the starting lineup as the designated hitter for Thursday's game against the Twins.

As expected, David Ortiz will get a day off on Thursday. It's worth noting that he's sitting against a left-hander, so if Lowell is successful and Ortiz continues to struggle, this will only fuel the debate about a potential platoon for the designated hitter spot.

Mike Lowell told reporters Saturday that this will probably be his last season playing professional baseball.

It shouldn't come as a surprise. Lowell is 36, doesn't have a clearly defined role on a team that is trying to trade him, and has been bitten by the injury bug a few too many times in the last year. He owns a .280/.343/.468 career batting line and 218 home runs in 12 professional seasons.