Troy Tulowitzki

From BR Bullpen

Troy Trever Tulowitzki (Tulo)

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 3", Weight 205 lb.
School Long Beach State University
High School Fremont High School
Debut August 30, 2006
Born October 10, 1984 in Santa Clara, CA USA

[edit] Biographical Information

Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki joined Long Beach State University two years after Bobby Crosby had manned the position. He hit .270/.307/.408 as a freshman and improved to .317/.410/.491 as a sophomore. He made the Big West Conference All-Conference team at short. In 2005, Tulowitzki was joined on the infield by Evan Longoria. Troy hit .349/.431/.599 and again was an All-Conference selection; he was 5th in the Conference in average.

He was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the first round of the 2005 amateur draft, the 7th overall pick, and signed for $2.3 million. He made his pro debut that year with the Modesto Nuts, hitting .266/.343/.457 with 4 home runs and 14 RBIs in 22 games with the club. In 2006, he moved up to the Tulsa Drillers and hit .291/.370/.473 with 13 homers in 104 games before being called up to the Rockies late in the season. He was a backup shortstop for the US in the 2006 Futures Game and drew a walk in his sole plate appearance. Baseball America rated him the best defensive shortstop in the Texas League.

On April 29, 2007, the Rockies shortstop turned the 13th unassisted triple play in Major League Baseball history. The play occurred with Kelly Johnson on second and Edgar Renteria on first in the 7th inning of a game against the Braves. The runners broke on a full count. Chipper Jones lined one behind second, which Tulowitzki snared. He stepped on second to retire Johnson then tagged out Renteria to complete the play.

Tulowitzki set a new record in home runs for National League rookie shortstops. Ernie Banks's 19 in 1954 had been the record until Tulowitzki hit his 20th in early September. Tulowitzki ended the season with 24 home runs, bettering Banks' record by 5 dingers.

In the wee hours of the morning on April 18, 2008 at Petco Park in San Diego, CA, Tulowitzki hit a double in the 22nd inning to drive in teammate Willy Taveras with what proved to be the winning run in the longest Major League game since 1993. The Rockies beat San Diego 2-1 in a game in which no runs were scored until the 14th inning. Tulowitzki had entered the game 1 for his past 20 and started it 0 for 6. On May 1, he tore a tendon in his left quadriceps muscle while charging a ground ball, putting him out indefinitely. He was hitting a disappointing .152 with only one home run and 11 RBI in 105 at bats at the time.