People talk about former Colorado Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki in one of two ways. Either that he’s a premier shortstop on both sides of the ball, or he would be if he could stay healthy. Tulowitzki is now the former Colorado shortstop because he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, along with reliever LaTroy Hawkins for another former All-Star shortstop, Jose Reyes, and prospect pitchers Jeff Hoffman and Miguel Castro, and a player to be named later.
Blue Jays Acquire Troy Tulowitzki
Tulowitzki, 31, is a five time All-Star, finished runner-up in Rookie of the Year voting in 2007, and is the recipient of two Gold Glove awards. This season, he’s hitting .300/.348/.471, which is actually fairly pedestrian compared to his career numbers. He’s also got 13 home runs and 53 RBIs to go along with that.
Tulowitzki was thought to be bothered by the altitude in Colorado, so it will be interesting to see if the turf bothers him in Toronto.
Colorado may have given up a hell of a player, but they’re getting one in return. Jose Reyes was the premier National League shortstop before and even during Tulowitzki’s arrival in Colorado.
Reyes spent the first nine seasons of his career with the New York Mets and dominated during that time. He led the league in triples four times, made all four of his All-Star Games with the Mets, led the league in hits with 204 in 2008, led the league in stolen bases thrice and won an NL batting title in 2011 after batting .337, in what would be his final season in New York.
Reyes, 32, has still been productive albeit not dominant in Toronto, as he is a .289 hitter in three seasons with the club and swiped 30 bags last year.
Reyes, like Tulo however, has had his fair share of injuries. He’s also had issues with his defense this season, while his .708 OPS this season is his lowest since 2005.
The Rockies also receive the 9th overall pick from the 2014 Draft Jeff Hoffman and another prospect Miguel Castro.
Hawkins, 42, still brings the heat even at his age. He has 20 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings this season and an average fastball above 93 mph. He should bring some stability to the back of the Blue Jays bullpen.
Hoffman, 22, underwent Tommy John surgery during his senior season in college. Since returning he’s quickly progressed through the Blue Jays system, as he was recently promoted to Double-A.
Castro started the season as the Blue Jays closer, before struggling and being sent to Triple-A. However he is a young pitcher, just 20-years-old, with outstanding velocity.
Main Photo: DENVER, CO – JULY 11: Troy Tulowitzki #2 of the Colorado Rockies hits a two run home run during the third inning against the Minnesota Twins at Coors Field on July 11, 2014 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
