BOSTON - As his teammates sprayed champagne and beer in his face, Mike Lowell lowered his head for cover. A second later, a group of clubhouse kids snuck up behind the veteran third baseman and dumped a bucket of ice down his back.

The joy of victory.

Lowell and the Sox have these celebrations down cold. They just had one two weeks ago, when they won the American League's wild card. They hope to repeat the scene again in the next week when they take on the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALCS. The series starts Friday at Tropicana Field.

Lowell will not be playing for the Sox in the series. After playing in two of the first three games of the ALDS against the Angels, Lowell was removed from the Red Sox' playoff roster last night and replaced by rookie infielder Gil Velazquez. Because Lowell was removed during the ALDS, he will not be eligible to play during the ALCS. He would be available for the World Series if the Red Sox can advance that far in the postseason.

The torn labrum in Lowell's hip was clearly hindering his ability in the 5-4 loss to the Angels in Game 3, both at the plate and in the field. He was 0 for 4 with a walk in the game and was removed once he reached base in the 10th inning. Lowell was 0 for 8 with a walk and three strikeouts in his two games in the series.

``If I was getting hits, it would be totally different," Lowell said. ``As a competitor you want to be out there, but things happen for a reason."

Lowell said he simply could not run hard because of the painful hip, and his lateral movement is restricted. ``We'd be looking for trouble trying to do something crazy in these games. It's holding me back too much.''

Without Lowell, Terry Francona chose to move Kevin Youkilis to third and play Mark Kotsay at first base. That's the likely lineup when the Red Sox open against the Rays.

kmcnamar@projo.com