When you get to the big bottom line in the toy department of life, aka sports, it really is about the people.<\/p>\n
Today we reminisce about a couple of baseball people that I have had the pleasure to spend a bit of time with\u2026young star Troy Tulowitzki, one of the biggest sporting donors among 49er alums and journeyman manager Clint Hurdle, Tulo’s skipper at Colorado and now the NL Manager of the Year for his resurrection of the Pittsburgh Pirates.<\/p>\n
Top of the news wire is the amazing Dirtbag shortstop Troy Tulowitzki who blew away the LBSU Hall of Fame crowd Tuesday night almost casually announcing a gift of $1 million to assist with the renovation of baseball facilities at Blair Field. There is a long list of projects that include new locker rooms, batting cages, bullpens, and adjacent practice facility. My guess is that fairly soon bulldozers will knock down the old Parks and Rec building (already flunking the seismic standards) and give the future Tulo\u2019s that new practice diamond. Troy told the LB Register<\/i>,<\/a> \u201cThere\u2019s no doubt it’s a lot of money but at the same time I wouldn’t want to give it to anybody else other than this university,\u2026I know it’s going to be well spent.\u201d<\/p>\n Although he has a Rockies contract through 2020 teams like the Cardinals covet this great glove and great bat. Last year he averaged .312 with 25 home runs and 82 RBI in 126 games, missing some time with assorted injuries.<\/p>\n Other big athletic donors include tennis patron Terry Rhodes, who began his collegiate studies at UCLA but finished by earning a business degree from CSULB in 1962 and went on to a successful law career. He gave $1.25 million and the tennis complex carries his name. Former CSULB Business Dean Mike Walter with his wife gave around two million for naming rights to the Pyramid and various academic areas.<\/p>\n Now the promised personal notes. First up is T-squared, Troy Tulowitzki, a Nor Cal Niner with a lively assortment of Polish Aunts and Uncles and a family in love with the letter \u201cT\u201d represented by his sister Tiffany and brother Tyler. During his playing days whenever I could I crashed the family tailgates and listened to his legendary feats in basketball (22.6 ppg as a senior) and as a scrambling quarterback for Fremont High. Of course when those uncles are filling your plate with Polish treats you listen to anything.<\/p>\n Tulo was a two-time All-Big West selection (second team in 2003 and first team in 2004) and a two-time All-Regional Tournament selection, earning Most Outstanding Player (MOP) honors in 2004. That same year he won a gold medal for Team USA in the World University Baseball Championship<\/a>. He was drafted by theRockies with the seventh overall pick in the first round of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our next profile is perhaps the most famous sporting name to come out of my home town of Merritt Island,Florida, Clint Hurdle. CH was just named 2013 National League Manager of the Year. Clint was a class mate of my sister in law Christine at MIHI in the mid 70s and although he was the BMOC the younger gals like Christine had eyes on him. <\/p>\n Clint played in the bigs for ten years with the Kansas City Royals<\/a>, Cincinnati Reds<\/a>, New York Mets<\/a>, and St. Louis Cardinals<\/a>. After retiring from playing baseball he spent eight seasons with the Rockies included leading his 2007 club<\/a> to the franchise’s first National League<\/a> pennant. Hurdle was hired as the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates<\/a> in 2010.<\/p>\n