ARLINGTON, Texas — This season marks Nathaniel Lowe’s third in Texas. And looking at what this former Mississippi State Bulldog has accomplished thus far, he and the Rangers have been a great fit.

In 2021, his first full season as a big-leaguer after Tampa traded him in December 2020, Lowe hit .264 with 18 homers and 72 RBI, both career-highs, and was second on the Rangers with a .771 OPS. Last season, he hit .302 with 27 homers and 76 RBI, earning an AL Silver Slugger award.

Lowe admits the trade has worked out quite well but takes no credit for that.

“I’ve got to give credit to my parents, the environment they’ve created, putting me in church, around other athletes and having opportunities where you can grow as a teammate and a person,” Lowe, 27, said.

“They rolled out the red carpet for me. My mom sat through thousands of innings of summer ball games, drove me around to games, and all that stuff. When my dad was overseas, she was both parents. It was very cool. I am a product of my surroundings. Having good teammates makes it easy to fit into this clubhouse.”

Before Lowe spent his final collegiate season in Starkville, he made two other stops. His college career began in his home state of Georgia at Mercer, where he played in 2014. He then spent 2015 at St. John’s River State College in Florida before landing at MSU his junior year, his final collegiate season as the Rays selected him in the 13th round of the June 2016 Amateur Draft.

Some might brand Lowe a college baseball nomad after playing at three different schools, but his experiences from Mercer, St. John’s River SC and MSU are ones he couldn’t have had anywhere else.

“It was awesome. It’s not something I can ever truly verbalize and describe because the experience was so different coming from a mid-major to a great junior college and then obviously a powerhouse Division I program,” Lowe said. “I can’t ask for anything different out of that experience. It would have been nice to stay at one place for three years, but I definitely wasn’t ready to go to Mississippi State as a freshman. I’m just very appreciative of having the experiences I did get to have.”

In 2016, Lowe hit .348 with five homers and 49 RBI for State, earning second-team All-America honors.

“[Finishing my college career at MSU was] perfect as in getting the full experience of what Division I baseball is supposed to look like,” he said. “[It was also] imperfect as in I think one of the best amateur teams that I’ve ever been on losing to end the season instead of winning it all.”

In Lowe’s first two seasons in Texas, he played for Chris Woodward, a first-time big-league manager who was relieved of his duties midway through the 2022 campaign. In fall 2022, the Rangers hired Bruce Bochy, who won three World Series with the Giants and is a former National League Manager of the Year.

Lowe and “Boch” are only several months into their player/manager relationship, but the longtime skipper has already made a strong impression on this ex-Bulldog.

“He’s done it already,” Lowe said. “To have a guy that’s won it all and understands what it’s going to take to win it all with this club, that’s all you can ask for out of a manager. He’s a true baseball guy. He gets it.”

However, Lowe has also already made a strong impression on his new manager.

“He’s just fun to be around. He loves playing the game,” Bochy said. “He’s a very good hitter, a talented hitter. At first base, done a nice job there, a really good all-around player. Had a big year last year. Don’t think he’s quite hit his stride, and he’ll tell you that, but if you look at the numbers, they’re pretty good.”

One of Lowe’s trademarks as a Ranger has been his consistent ability to work pitchers for long at-bats, plate appearances consisting of six or more pitches.

“Getting a hit at the end of it or working a walk is awesome because they’re putting their best stuff out there,” Lowe said. “When you get to capitalize on that [pitcher’s] mistake, that’s why you play. That’s why you go to the dish. You go up there to do damage. So, yeah, it’s a gratifying feeling knowing your plan’s going to pay off.”

Lowe is the latest former Bulldog to star at first base for the Rangers, a list consisting of Rafael Palmeiro (1989-1993 and 1999-2003), Will Clark (1994-1998) and Amory native Mitch Moreland (2010-2016). And this ex-Bulldog is humbled to even be mentioned alongside some other great Ranger first basemen.

“Yeah, it’s super cool. I’ve never heard that out loud either,” Lowe admits. “I’ve thought about it before, but I’ve never heard that I’m in a category with those guys. Yeah, they had great success at State then obviously great professional careers, but having a chance to follow in their footsteps is really cool.”