In a way, I hate to give this story any more ink than it’s already getting. But Noah Lowry, a decent pitcher who had a better year than people realize, had one of those mental breakdown games so bad, you wonder if a speedy recovery will be in order.

Lowry has walked 12 hitters in 2 1-3 innings this spring and has an ERA of 23.14. He left the clubhouse without speaking to reports, but issued a statement through the team.

“There’s not much to say when you don’t go and throw any strikes,” he said. “I’m just upset. I’m upset my spring has started the way it has.”

Here’s San Francisco writer Bruce Jenkins, (as always) whimsically and sentimentally — joining the pile on.

They say baseball’s most meaningless numbers appear in spring training, but there’s no dismissing Lowry’s line: one-plus innings, four runs, nine walks, two wild pitches, three more pitches off the screen (two of them rocketed right back to home plate, preventing baserunners from advancing, or it would have been four wild pitches). That’s not mere wildness. That is a set of pitching mechanics in complete breakdown.

The Texas Rangers, though clearly disturbed, tried to play the performance down.

“I don’t know if I even want to talk about it,” said second baseman Ian Kinsler, who took a four-pitch walk to start the game. “You never want to see anyone struggle like that. I didn’t think anything of it at first because I was just the first hitter. I just hope he’s healthy.”

And captain Michael Young.

Said Michael Young, who walked to load the bases in the first: “It’s a difficult thing to go through. Even though you are trying to beat the other team, you want to beat them by executing. You don’t like to see something like that happen.”