Blue Jays: Troy Tulowitzki wants to play shortstop

In a meeting with members of the media Sunday morning, injured shortstop Troy Tulowitzki says he won’t consider a change in position.

Just days after Blue Jays skipper John Gibbons told reporters that Troy Tulowitzki will not return to play in 2018, the shortstop himself spoke out on a change in position, the Blue Jays’ imminent rebuild, and other pertinent issues.

As Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reported on Twitter, Tulo had the following to say about John Gibbons as a manager:

"“I love Gibby. Gibby’s great. You talk about a good guy … It’s been awesome my years with him here. Without a doubt I hope Gibby’s back. But also I want Gibby to be happy, so whatever he wants to do I stand by it. That’s what friends do.”"

When asked about the prospect of a Blue Jays rebuild, the former Colorado Rockie bluntly responded that he “doesn’t believe in rebuilds”, further noting that he thinks that “you can win with young players…you can win games with honestly anybody on the field”. (Source: Ben Nicholson-Smith)

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Most impactfully, Tulowitzki remained adamant that he can play shortstop next season. As Dan Shulman reports, Tulo had this to say about a potential position change:

"“I’m a shortstop. If they don’t want me to play short, I’ll pack my bags and go home.”"

Though somewhat surprising, it’s a little jarring to hear Tulowitzki vehemently shut down a potential positional shift that could, in the long run, benefit the team on which he plays.

Finally, the Santa Clara, California native said that while he still has some “discomfort” in his heels following surgery earlier this year, he’s confident that he can return in 2019. He also noted that he’s been very impressed with some of the shortstops he’s seen this year, mainly Aledmys Diaz and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

All in all, this media session didn’t exactly reveal anything shocking, but it did remind us of something that we all knew on some level – Troy Tulowitzki is a competitor, a fighter and a passionate baseball player. Even injured, he still wants to play and wants to win. Whether he gets the chance to do so with the Blue Jays again, however, remains to be seen.