FORT MYERS, Fla. – Michael Bowden’s entry into Saturday’s game waited on John Lackey to finish his outing, as the young right-hander was left to piggyback the Red Sox’ star offseason pitching addition. There was something apt about that structure, since Bowden’s big league future also may have been delayed by the arrival of the former Angels star.

Bowden understands the numbers game. He sees that the Sox’ rotation already runs at least six deep with Lackey joining Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Tim Wakefield, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Clay Buchholz. And so, he couldn’t help but experience a measure of frustration when the Sox signed Lackey to be a rotation fixture through 2014.

“Of course it’s tough. I’m here with the same goal as everybody else. I’m trying to get to the big leagues,” said Bowden. “It’s tough in this organization, but I’m gong to do everything I can to get there. That’s all I can do and control.”

Towards that end, Bowden was proactive in his efforts to put himself in better position to achieve his big league ambitions this offseason. He did not simply sit on his solid performances at each level of the minors.

The 23-year-old, while pitching consistently against older competition, has consistently shown an ability to compete effectively. Bowden has an ERA of 3.51 or lower at each level of the minors. In 2009, he spent the full season (with the exception of a couple of brief callups to the majors) in Triple A, where he went 4-6 with a 3.13 ERA that ranked sixth in the International League among starters with at least 100 innings. He has proven durable, making at least 25 starts in each of the last four seasons.

And yet, Bowden refused to remain complacent with such results. He recognized that his season had yielded inconsistencies, and that his delivery had led to a decline in control (he walked 3.3 batters per nine innings, a career high in the minors) suggested a need to tweak.

 “Success isn’t always by the numbers,” said Bowden. “I know there are times I can be better. I know there are certain scenarios where I needed to change things to be more successful. I knew that I needed to change something to be more consistent.

“Last year, I was changing my mechanics throughout the year, I was adding a new pitch throughout the year. It was just kind of a bumpy season, but developmentally, it was a very, very good season. I experienced a lot, whether it was the bullpen, adjusting my mechanics, making changes on the fly, getting a new pitch. So last year, it was an up and down season, but it was a very, very good season.”

Bowden had spent 2009 trying to smooth out his delivery and trying to add a slider into his fastball/curveball/changeup repertoire. The process was not without its bumps.

Bowden’s solid Pawtucket ERA notwithstanding, his stuff seemed to suffer some decline last year. His velocity and command both seemed to slip, and his feel for his secondary pitches was up and down. When he got to the majors, he was shelled for a 9.56 ERA (though most of the damage came in two horrific outings, when he gave up seven runs apiece to the Yankees and Blue Jays).

As a result, Bowden approached Sox officials after the season to seek their thoughts about what adjustments he could make to improve.

“He felt like he needed to make an adjustment to get a better feel for his secondary stuff. While individually he shows quality pitches, he was not repeating them enough,” said Sox pitching coach John Farrell. “That’s where, when he approached us and said he needed to make an adjustment, that opened the door to the thoughts of many in player development and what we saw briefly at the major league level.

It gave us the ability to walk through that door and say, ‘Here’s what we think should take place.’”

The area to address both sides was fairly obvious. When he saw himself pitch, Bowden felt that he looked too stiff and robotic. Sox officials agreed.

“When a delivery starts, stops, starts again, there are inconsistencies and variables there that can affect timing,” said Farrell. “That start-stop-start, as that changes just a hair, that affects command and the strike zone that’s smaller at the major league level than at the minor league level. To refine command is something that was needed.”

His delivery has always appeared somewhat halting and jerky, including an extra hitch after he lifts his leg. His arm action has also been unusual, with a very compact throwing motion, and often – especially last season – it seemed as if his arm and legs weren’t working together to generate velocity.

That delivery has always made talent evaluators do a double take. Because it has appeared somewhat robotic, it has led to heightened skepticism about his skills.

One talent evaluator, for instance, suggested over the offseason that his mechanics would leave teams skeptical about his results until he proves that he can translate his minor league success to the big leagues. Certainly, the perception of Bowden took a step backwards last year. Evaluators described him as anything from a No. 4 starter to a likely bullpen candidate.

Even the Sox have had their concerns about his delivery in the past. The team sent Bowden to the American Sports Medicine Institute (headed by Dr. James Andrews) in Birmingham, Ala., after he entered their system to make sure that the pitcher’s unorthodox delivery wasn’t putting undue stress on his arm. They determined that he wasn’t, but even so, the way in which he got the ball to the plate was abnormal.

Of course, there is a reason for Bowden’s unorthodox delivery.

“My first pitching coach was in my first full season in Greenville,” said Bowden. “I never had money to work on mechanics growing up, my family didn’t have that money. So it was all natural, whatever felt natural for me.”

This offseason, Bowden worked with Farrell and minor league pitching coordinator Ralph Treuel to make his delivery more fluid. The three watched video of other pitchers, with Bowden identifying elements that he can incorporate into his delivery. The pitcher then went to Boston during the offseason to work with Treuel and Farrell, who seemed pleased with the results.

Now, in games, the difference is apparent. Bowden has looked like a different pitcher in two spring outings of work, one against Boston College, and also in his two shutout innings against the Twins in which he fanned a couple.

The extra hitch in his leg lift is gone. His drop step has gotten better direction to the plate, the result of his upper and lower body working in greater concert. While he is using the same release point that has made it difficult for hitters to pick up the ball from his hand, his arm swing to get to that release point is now longer and less halting.

“There’s a lot more movement in my windup to get more rhythm and fluidity. That was my main goal this offseason. I just wanted to relax, look more fluid, be more natural,” Bowden explained. “Now it’s more one motion.”

That progress has merely reinforced Bowden’s conviction. He believes that he has shown that he can succeed at every level of the minors. Only one challenge awaits, but for that, he must wait on his opportunity.

“I definitely feel like I can go up there, compete and get major league hitters out. I think that’s the next step of my development,” said Bowden. “Now, I’m just waiting for my time to come.”