It was the tweet heard around the world . . . well, the baseball world. At 10:28 p.m. on Monday, July 27, Ken Rosenthal tweeted: “BREAKING: Tulo traded to the #BlueJays.” The internet was shocked into a frenzy as people tried to figure out who else was involved in the deal. Some people mourned, everyone prayed that the Rockies had received something good in return and the sports writers prepared for a late night.

BREAKING: Tulo traded to #BlueJays.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 28, 2015

Rumors had been swirling for days, weeks, months, years that Tulo was going to be traded, but despite that, there didn’t seem to be any major signs that the shortstop was leaving the Rockies before the non-waiver trade deadline—until Monday night.

As the night went on, more and more details were released: 42-year-old right-handed-pitcher LaTroy Hawkins also went with Tulo (Hawkins has also said that he’s going to retire this year) in return for veteran shortstop Jose Reyes and three pitching prospects. The deal was finally officially announced by the Rockies at 9 a.m. on July 28.

#Rockies clubhouse was a weird place as we waited for word on Tulo. Players, entire staff, was stunned. — Patrick Saunders (@psaundersdp) July 28, 2015

Tulowitzki, members of the media and other Rockies expressed surprise at the trade, and it was particularly hard on Rockies owner Dick Monfort, who had to hold back tears when talking about it. Weiss was also reportedly tearing up when he had to take Tulo out of the Rockies’ game Monday night against the Chicago Cubs. The Toronto deal happened very quickly Monday night, though Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos had apparently been interested in Tulowitzki since the winter.

While Reyes is the big name to come out of this trade on the Toronto side, it’s the pitching prospects who are more interesting. The Rockies acquired right-handers Miguel Castro, Jeff Hoffman and Jesus Tinoco. Castro is the closest to the big leagues; the Rockies assigned him to Triple-A Albuquerque and he’s pitched in the majors before in 13 games with the Blue Jays earlier this year. He could be groomed to be a starter or a hard-throwing closer. Something that’s particularly good to see is that he’s good at producing ground ball outs, which is needed at Coors Field.

Hoffman is the centerpiece of this trade. He was ranked as the Blue Jays’ third best prospect and is now ranked at number four in the Rockies organization. Hoffman was drafted ninth overall last year, a position he dropped to after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but the Rockies—nor the Blue Jays—are concerned about his past surgery. Currently with the Rockies Double-A affiliate in New Britain, Connecticut, his curveball is already nearly as good as his fastball. His fastball sits around the mid-90s like Castro, but Hoffman hits 98 easily. He has also already developed a third pitch in a change-up. He’s estimated to make his big-league debut in 2017.

Tinoco is the farthest from the majors, having been assigned to Single-A. However, he still has a strong fastball and shows signs of developing a strong slider and change-up. Tinoco is also a big, strong, athletic kid at six-feet-four-inches, 190 pounds.

Reyes wasn’t flipped to another team before July 31’s non-waiver deadline, but he could be traded through waivers or over the winter. Even if he stays, Reyes is costing the Rockies a good deal less than Troy Tulowitzki: Reyes is owed $44 million over the next two years in comparison to the $104 million that now the Blue Jays owe to Tulo over the next five years.

The Rockies’ organization doesn’t necessarily have the best track record in developing talent, but hopefully these prospects will defy that. In any form, it seems like the Rockies—in the hands of Bridich—are ready to make some real moves in order to improve.

As for Tulo, considering his first hit as a Blue Jay was a home-run in his second at-bat ever for Toronto on July 29, I think he’ll do just fine. At any rate, he now has the chance to wake up every morning and play in meaningful games as the Blue Jays are competing for a playoff berth. The Mile High City will miss him, but this could be the fresh energy that Tulo and the Rockies both need. It’s time for the young players—guys like Nolan Arenado and DJ LeMahieu—to step up and take charge of the clubhouse. With the possibility of Trevor Story and new pitchers rising through the minor leagues, maybe this trade is the beginning of something better for the Rockies.

 

Notes: Tulowitzki went 3-5 with 3 RBI and a home run in his first game for the Blue Jays.

Reyes went 1-3 with a stolen base in his July 29 debut for the Rockies.

The Rockies called up pitchers Aaron Laffey and Justin Miller from Triple-A Albuquerque on July 28. OF Corey Dickerson was placed on the Disabled List with a rib fracture. This is the third time he’s been on the DL this season.