Troy Tulowitzki’s alleged cheating and the MVP(D)
Troy Tulowitzki is probably the front runner for the National League MVP through 47 games. He leads the NL in batting average at .387, home runs with 13, and slugging percentage with a mark of .736.
His overall numbers are outstanding but his home numbers are out of this world. A .521 average, eight of his 13 homers, and a .972 slugging percentage in 20 home games will make you wonder if Tulo is even human.
However, if you are a Giants broadcaster you may be wondering if something else is going on. During one of his reoccurring appearances on the Murph and Mac morning show on KNBR, Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow revealed his feelings on Tulowitzki’s hot start.
“I swear he’s getting signs,” said Krukow. “There’s no way you hit like that for this long.”
And it isn’t just the numbers that make Tulo’s home performance suspicious to the former big league pitcher. Krukow, who pitched for 14 seasons said the shortstop’s incredible balance at the plate is one of the give-aways.
“He never was off his back leg,” said Krukow. “Whatever speed you threw at him he was on it, and that kind of gets you thinking, but hey if you can get away with it I guess it’s legal.”
So one man thinks the MVP is stealing signs, but someone with a more intimate knowledge of the Rockies thinks that someone else might be more important for the Mile-High team.
In response to the allegations made towards his shortstop, Rockies manager Walt Weiss told Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post that the story goes much deeper than just Tulo.
“My response is that we do it all,” Weiss said with wry smile and a laugh. “We have a light bulb on the scoreboard we flash. Keep an eye on Dinger, he’s involved. We switch out the baseballs, we have the umpires in on it.”
So, is Tulo the team MVP?
Or is Dinger the MVPD (Most Valuable Purple Dinosaur)?
Maybe it’s the umpires?
Was Mike Krukow really just joking around as he told Patrick Saunders?
“I don’t want you to read anything malicious into my comments, because they weren’t,” he said. “They were tongue-in-cheek and we were having fun with it.”
Decide for yourself and hear what else Krukow had to say here on the KNBR website.