Per Larry Stone, Mark Lowe is undergoing back surgery called microdiscectomy on June 15th. Do not expect to see him this season.

Jeff's note: You shouldn't be too surprised. Lowe's injury was downplayed for some reason at the beginning, but Mark Lowe had a herniated disc, and herniated discs are kind of a big deal. Russell Branyan had a herniated disc. Brian Roberts has a herniated disc. Though no two injuries are alike, herniated discs generally don't get better very fast. They suck, and sometimes - as is the case here - they end up needing surgery.

Needless to say, the bullpen is another one of those things that we thought would be fine, but that hasn't been fine.