Tulo gets $38-million parting gift from Jays
Veteran doesn’t fit youth movement, writes Rob Longley.
LAS VEGAS In describing the end of the Troy Tulowitzki era as a Toronto Blue Jay on Tuesday, Ross Atkins managed to keep a straight face.
The team’s general manager twice said that the 34-year-old shortstop was “unbelievably professional and respectful” when informed his services would no longer be required at the Rogers Centre, or anywhere else the team plays. Which begs the question, who wouldn’t be professional and respectful after getting paid a whopping US$38 million to be set free to pursue further major league employment with any other team in baseball?
Ultimately, however, the Jays felt it was prudent to continue moving toward the team’s youth movement that is well underway.
“Where we are today ... is not where we, ideally as an organization, wanted to be with Troy Tulowitzki, and certainly not what Troy planned, either,” Atkins said.
“It gives us roster flexibility for both (the team and player) to be more proactive.”
Atkins and his boss, team president Mark Shapiro, surely must have had to swallow hard when they went to the upper echelon bean counters at Rogers Communications with the proposition of such a massive buyout.
But they presumably did so with the spin that the future was worth expediting, no matter the cost.
“Supportive,” was how Atkins described the conversation unfolding. “Obviously you have to explain our rationale, and there are many conversations that have been had, not just one. I don’t want to get into an accounting discussion, but that money’s on our books.”
A week ago, Atkins said Tulowitzki would have to “earn” his playing time, despite declarations from the smooth-fielding shortstop last summer that he would pack his bags if he wasn’t the starter.
Then on Monday, Atkins praised Tulowitzki for the condition he was in and all but declared him fully recovered from surgeries to both heels that caused him to miss the entire 2018 season.
Perhaps that was a last-ditch effort to dupe another team into making an offer for Tulowitzki, but alas, there were no takers.
A key part of the team’s run to a 2015 playoff appearance, Tulowitzki battled injury throughout his time with the Jays. And now, like Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista and Josh Donaldson, he’s a distant memory, as is the money former GM Alex Anthopoulos spent on those stars.
At best, Tulowitzki wasn’t going to be an everyday player in 2019, and his exit certainly clears the way for Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to assume the regular role at shortstop.
Though it’s been a while since he played, Tulowitzki will certainly be fondly remembered by the fan base, and in the clubhouse, where he was widely recognized as a leader.
The native of Santa Clara, Calif., owns a career batting average of .290 with 224 home runs, 779 RBIS, and an OPS of .856 in 12 seasons with the Colorado Rockies and the Jays.