DETROIT — Mike Lowell couldn’t have picked a better time to break out of his season-long slump.

Today, his book, Deep Drive, authored by the Boston Herald’s Rob Bradford, hits the shelves.

Last night, Lowell gave sales a boost by falling a triple shy of the cycle, and falling a few feet short of a two-homer night in the Sox’ 6-3 victory over the Tigers.

Lowell clubbed his first homer of the year, accounting for his first two RBI of the year, in the second inning. He also doubled and scored on a homer by Kevin Youkilis in the fourth and singled to right in the sixth. His deep drive to left with two on and one out in the seventh was hauled in by Tigers left fielder Gary Sheffield.

He said he wasn’t sure that one was going to go out.

“I hit it a little toward the end of the bat,” said Lowell. “I hoped it would go, but I didn’t think so. I didn’t square it up that well.”

Overall, though, it was a nice night at the plate for Lowell, who spent 18 days on the disabled list because of a sprained left thumb, returning last Tuesday.

“My right hand is so much stronger than my left hand, but I saw the ball well and swung at pitches I wanted to,” said Lowell, whose 3-for-5 night boosted his average to a season-high .237.

Mixed reviews

While Daisuke Matsuzaka’s outstanding numbers are a mirage in some ways, the stat sheet is kinder to left-hander Hideki Okajima than maybe it should be.

Okajima pitched 1 1/3 innings last night, allowing one hit. He did not give up a run, so his earned-run average dipped down to 0.64 — one earned run in 14 innings.

But that one hit Okajima surrendered came on his first pitch of the game. He entered with the bases filled and two outs in the seventh and pinch-hitter Marcus Thames greeted him with a two-run single to left.

Those two runs were charged to Craig Hansen. Okajima has inherited 11 baserunners this season, and an alarming eight of them have scored. Once he got out of the seventh, he looked solid in working a one-two-three eighth.

Back with a bang

David Ortiz, who was scratched from Sunday’s game because of a sore right knee, was back in the starting lineup last night.

The Sox DH went 2-for-4 — a ringing RBI single in the seventh and a solo homer off Detroit closer Todd Jones in the ninth. He extended his modest hitting streak to five games. Ortiz is batting .454 (10-for-22) over that stretch, raising his average to a season-high .225.

Colon progressing

Bartolo Colon had a brief but successful rehab outing yesterday afternoon for the Sox’ extended spring team against the Orioles’ extended spring team in Florida.

Colon, who has been sidelined because of a strained oblique, threw 19 pitches in two innings, walking one and fanning one. He did not allow a run. Then he went and threw 16 more pitches in the bullpen.

Francona said the report he received had Colon touching 93 mph on the radar gun.

The right-hander is expected to join the Red Sox in Detroit before heading to Pawtucket to continue his rehab assignment.

The plan now is for Colon to pitch for the PawSox Saturday night at McCoy Stadium at Norfolk.

skrasner@projo.com