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The Colorado Rockies have traded star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and right-handed reliever LaTroy Hawkins to the Toronto Blue Jays, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal. The Rockies will receive veteran shortstop Jose Reyes and right-handed pitching prospects Miguel Castro, Jeff Hoffman, and Jesus Tinoco, per additional reports.
Despite early rumblings, the deal appears to be between just the Rockies and Blue Jays -- and not a third team, according to multiple reports.
Tulowitzki was pulled in the ninth inning of the Rockies' 9-8 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Monday. There was speculation that he was injured on an RBI groundout in the top half of the inning, in which the Rockies scored four runs to rally from a three-run deficit. That obviously isn't the case.
The five-time National League All-Star is in the midst of an 0-for-20 slump but is still hitting .300 with an .818 OPS and 12 home runs. Trade rumors have surrounded the 30-year-old star for several seasons, but ramped up to new levels earlier this year when his agent went to the press saying Tulo wanted to be traded.
The Rockies and Tulowitzki both refuted those claims on mulitple occasions. And we'll probably never know if he actually demanded a trade. But here we are...
Tulowitzki finishes his Rockies career a .299/.372/.514 hitter with 188 home runs in parts of 10 seasons. He is owed $98 million through 2020. The Blue Jays will take on the entirety of that, per CBS Sports' Jon Heyman.
Hawkins has pitched extremely well since returning from a stint on the disabled list, compiling a 1.10 ERA in 17 apperances. The 42-year-old veteran is in his final season as a big leaguer.
Reyes, 32, is hitting .285/.322/.385 in 311 plate appearances this season. Like Tulowitzki, he's a star player who has dealt with injuries for a large chunk of his career. The 13-year veteran, who is owed $48 million through 2017, owns a career .291/.340/.433 batting line.
Castro is the Blue Jays' No. 5 prospect, according to MLB.com. The 20-year-old right-hander has a somewhat underwhelming major league relief stint (4.38 ERA, 91 ERA+ in 13 appearances) under his belt but is a power arm who projects as a mid-rotation starter if he can get his command under control. If not, the Rockies could very well have their future closer. Castro can miss bats; he's struck out nearly 10 batters per nine innings in parts of four minor league seasons.
Hoffman was the ninth overall pick in the 2014 MLB Draft. The 22-year-old East Carolina alum owns a 2.93 ERA in 13 starts this season, his first in professional baseball. Hoffman was ranked as the No. 73 overall prospect in baseball prior to the season by Baseball Prospectus. He underwent Tommy John surgery last year, so it's entirely possible he's still working his way back to full strength.
Tinoco, just 20, is in his third professional season. The Venezuelan starter owns a 3.54 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 for Low-A Lansing of the Midwest League. Tinoco was ranked No. 29 in Toronto's system entering the season by MLB.com.
We will have much more on this in the coming hours and days. Stay tuned.
UPDATE: The Colorado Rockies have officially announced the trade of Tulo and Hawkins to Toronto.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">OFFICIAL: The <a href="https://twitter.com/Rockies">@Rockies</a> have traded SS Troy Tulowitzki and RHP LaTroy Hawkins to the Toronto Blue Jays. <a href="http://t.co/sKj0kybr1a">pic.twitter.com/sKj0kybr1a</a></p>— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rockies/status/626044580375334912">July 28, 2015</a></blockquote>
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