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The Quick Rise of Troy
by Brian Gomez, The Denver Gazette
April 2, 2007
DENVER - As a teenager, Troy Tulowitzki played baseball for his
father. He was a powerful hitter and an effective pitcher.
Ken Tulowitzki wanted his son to stay levelheaded. At practice, he
took a calm approach with his team but scolded Troy for his mistakes
and rarely recognized his accomplishments.
"Why do you always yell at me? Why don't you get on the other
players?" Troy recalled asking his father.
"It's just fatherly love" was Ken's response.
Ken's strategy worked to perfection. And Troy Tulowitzki has worked
his way into the opening day lineup for the Colorado Rockies.
Tulowitzki will start at shortstop at 2 p.m. today when the Rockies
open the season against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field. At
22, he's the Rockies' youngest player and by far the most
inexperienced starting position player.
Most figured Tulowitzki would rise quickly after the Rockies selected
him with their first pick (seventh overall) in the 2005 draft. Few
figured he never would play for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox and would
steal the starting job from Clint Barmes.
Tulowitzki has surprised lots of people since he began fielding ground
balls from his father outside his home in Santa Clara, Calif.
He batted better than .500 his junior and senior years in high school,
then had a .453 slugging percentage in three seasons at Long Beach
State. He impressed in Single-A Modesto and batted .291 with 13 home
runs and 61 RBIs in Double-A Tulsa.
No Rockies position player has made his big-league debut faster than
Tulowitzki, who was called up in August, less than 15 months after he
signed. He's the third-youngest position player in franchise history.
"It can get tough," Tulowitzki said about the pressure of becoming
an
everyday starter. "If people have big expectations for you, that
means
they either expect you to do good things or expect you to be one of
the better players."
In spring training, Tulowitzki exceeded expectations by adding some
patience to his aggressiveness at the plate.
Tulowitzki hit .321 with six doubles and seven RBIs despite playing
the final 13 games with a bruised right wrist. Barmes was optioned to
the Sky Sox after he hit .229 with three doubles and three RBIs.
Asked if he could consistently hit for power, Tulowitzki said, "That's
going to come with me getting a little bit older. I'm a young player
and learning all the time. As I become older and more mature, that
will come."
Off the field, Tulowitzki remains grounded, like his father envisioned.
"If you saw him walking down the street, you would never know that
he
was called up and that he was the first pick," Rockies pitching
prospect Greg Reynolds said. "Even talking to him, you would never
know. That's a reflection of how good of a guy he is."
Said Rockies catcher Chris Iannetta: "He's the same kid that I knew
from before. I don't think he has changed."
Tulowitzki said his father still gives him advice, although he's more
encouraging.
"Now that I'm at this level, he hasn't been saying as much,"
Tulowitzki said. "Every once in a while, if he watches a game and
sees
something that I can impro
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