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Inducted June 20, 2024

As a shortstop at California State University, Tulowitzki earned All-Big West honors, and helped Team USA win a gold medal in the World University Baseball Championship in 2004. The Colorado Rockies made him the 7^th overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft, and he made his major league debut the following year. For the next 13 seasons (2006-2019), Tulowitzki enjoyed a stellar MLB career, playing with Rockies, the Toronto Blue Jays, and the New York Yankees.  He is a five-time MLB All-Star (2010-11; 2013-15), a two-time Gold Glove Award winner (2010 & 2011) and a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2010 & 2011).  His MLB career totals include a .290 batting average, 225 home runs, 780 RBI, and a slugging percentage of .495.  His career fielding percentage of .985 is tied for first all-time among major league shortstops.

INDUCTION BANQUET PROGRAM STORY — June 20, 2024

Playing the Game the Right Way

By Mike Horan
Director of Communications, Detroit Pistons / NPASHF Board Member

At two or three, he began picking up a bat and a ball. From there came little league games, coached by his father, Ken. Posters of his childhood idols, all shortstops, of course, including the likes of Nomar Garciaparra, Derek Jeter, Cal Ripken Jr., Miguel Tejada, plastered his bedroom walls. He didn’t sit around saying, “I want to be a big leaguer one day,” but around the age of nine or 10, Troy Tulowitzki knew he wanted to take baseball as far he possibly could.

That passion for the game took him to 13 Major League seasons, five All-Star appearances, two Gold Glove Awards, two Silver Slugger Awards, and today, an induction to the National Polish American Sports Hall of Fame.

“It’s an honor,” Tulowitzki said. “Anytime ‘hall of fame,’ whatever hall of fame it is, is mentioned it is something pretty cool and special. I’m not the type of person to pat myself on the back, but I think it’ll be cool for my family to be recognized and another way for me to show my kids that hard work does matter. It’ll be cool for them to be there and see me get recognized and honored for just doing things the right way.”

Tulowitzki grew up in the Bay Area, and starred at Fremont High School in Sunnyvale, California, earning four varsity letters enroute to being named second team All-State, a three-time team MVP and the Freemont Athlete of the Year in 2002.

From Freemont, Tulowitzki took his talents to California State University, Long Beach where he batted .310 over 155 career games with 20 home runs and 117 RBI earning Most Outstanding Player honors in 2004. He was highly regarded as one of the best shortstops in the country, and in 2005, was selected No. 7 overall in the Major League Baseball Draft by the Colorado Rockies.

“It validated all my hard work and all the sacrifices I made growing up, through high school and everything, I just put my head down to achieve a dream. In college, same thing, there are a lot of different times throughout someone’s career where they can veer the wrong way, and I think I kind of stayed the course and got rewarded for it,” Tulowitzki said. “That’s what I remember the most, the sacrifice of going to the gym, going to cage, constantly asking questions to try to get better, and then seeing yourself grow and knowing I had something with the work ethic and had a little blueprint on how to get better.”

“That was the first step, getting drafted and say, ‘Wow, I can really do this thing.’ It was a dream come true, but at the same time, I think I was never satisfied no matter if it was the draft or getting to the Big Leagues, I never became satisfied. I was always on a mission to become the best player in the game.”

Tulowitzki didn’t have to wait long to prove he belonged. After just 126 minor league games, he made his MLB debut on Aug. 30, 2006. In his first full season as a rookie in 2007, he finished second in the Rookie of the Year race, helping his team to the World Series.

Known for his defensive prowess, Tulowitzki never played a defensive inning at another position other than shortstop and was routinely in the conversation as one of the best middle infielders in the MLB.

“I don’t know what it was,” Tulowitzki said, “if it was a pride thing or if a few times people tried to push me off shortstop and said I was a big-body guy and I just took it as a challenge, and was like, ‘alright, I’m going to be the best I can possibly be at this position, I need to prove all the naysayers wrong and that I’m an elite defensive shortstop.”

He made his first All-Star appearance in 2010, which coincided with his first Gold Glove Award given to the best the top defensive player at each position as well as the Silver Slugger Award, awarded to the best offensive player at each position. Tulowitzki repeated as the Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award winner in back-to-back seasons. His success continued as he was named to the 2011, 2013, 2014 and 2015 All-Star teams.

Tulowitzki would go on to play for the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees before retiring in 2019. Throughout his career, he battled a number of injuries, but to him, the injuries were a part of the journey, and proof he gave it his all throughout his Major League career.

“A lot of people talk about the injuries and talk about the possibilities of doing this or doing that in your career, but I think the fact that I can look back at it and not have any regrets and just say I did everything I could to get better no matter if I had injuries or not,” Tulowitzki said.

 “The fact I never just threw in the towel…I honestly showed up to the field every day trying to be the best version of myself. So, when I look back, I probably am most proud of that. It’s not the numbers or anything like that, it’s just the fact I did what I always wanted to do which is play the game the right way, play hard and go all the way to the end until basically the wheels fall off and they did.”

Upon retiring, Tulowitzki joined the Texas Longhorns baseball coaching staff, serving as an assistant coach, and continuing to make baseball a part of his life.

“The game has given me everything I’ve had so just trying to give back to the younger generation, teach them the things that I’ve learned and be there for them,” Tulowitzki said.

 “Baseball is a tough game mentally, physically, the whole deal. Anytime I can reach a kid and say, ‘Hey man, you’re way better than me at this age or whatever it is to help them, the little ins and outs of the game, I enjoy it. I genuinely love the game so being around it and in it in some capacity helps me as well.”

Troy Tulowitzki knew he wanted to take baseball as far as he possibly could. An illustrious career filled with accolades from start to finish, he did just that. And some.