AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Baseball head coach David Pierce has announced the hiring of 13-year Major League Baseball veteran Troy Tulowitzki as an assistant coach on the Longhorns staff. With the hiring of Tulowitzki, assistant Sean Allen will assume the role of pitching coach and continue as the recruiting coordinator on Pierce's staff. Tulowitzki, a five-time All-Star replaces Phil Haig, who is no longer with the program.
"Tulo and I had an opportunity to spend some time together and I came away so impressed with his desire to teach and his excitement to become a part of Texas Baseball," Pierce said. "Longhorn legends Huston Street and Drew Stubbs gave great endorsements on Tulo's behalf. His knowledge goes without saying but his passion and energy for the development of young men left such a meaningful impression on me. He will be a great addition to our staff. I am excited to have Troy, his wife Danyll and their son Taz join The University of Texas Baseball program."
In addition to his five All-Star selections, Tulowitzki is a two-time Gold Glove Award winner and a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner. He spent 10 seasons with the Colorado Rockies, before joining the Toronto Blue Jays from 2015-17 and finishing his career with the New York Yankees in 2019.
A career .290 hitter, Tulowitzki finished his MLB career with 1,391 hits, 264 doubles, 225 home runs and 780 RBI. His 225 homers are the 12th-most ever by an MLB shortstop. Tulowitzki is one of just four shortstops in MLB history to compile a .984 career fielding percentage or better.
After making his Major League debut in 2006, Tulowitzki helped lead the Rockies to the 2007 National League Championship and the franchise's first World Series appearance. In 2007, he led all MLB shortstops in fielding percentage (.987), putouts (262), total chances (834), assists (561), and double plays turned (114).
In 2010, Tulowitzki was named to his first All-Star team, finished fifth in voting for National League MVP and won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger award. He raked in the honors again in 2011, being named an All-Star, Gold Glove and Silver Slugger and finishing eighth in MVP voting.
Tulowitzki was named an All-Star for the final time in 2015 and finished the season in Toronto after being traded to the Blue Jays in July. He helped lead Toronto to the American League Championship Series, falling just shy of the World Series.
A two-time All-American and three-time All-Conference player, Tulowitzki was selected with the seventh overall pick of the 2005 MLB Draft out of Long Beach State. In 2004, Tulowitzki was named the Most Valuable Player of the Palo Alto Regional. Following the season, Tulowitzki was a 2004 selection to the USA Collegiate National Team and helped win the Gold Medal at the FISU World University Championships. He was inducted into the Long Beach State Hall of Fame in 2013.
Tulowitzki married his wife Danyll in 2009 and the couple have a son, Taz.
Allen returns to a role he last held as an assistant at Florida International University from 2008-11, running the team's pitching staff. In his first full season as pitching coach in 2009, the Panthers led the conference in strikeouts and surrendered the fewest walks with a single-season school record low of 173. In 2010, the program captured its first Sun Belt Conference title with the league's top ERA, advancing to the NCAA Tournament in 2010 and 2011.
"Coach Allen is a baseball man," Pierce said. "He has a history of coaching pitchers and the demeanor for handling a pitching staff. I believe it's always about coaching the individual's needs and understanding how each pitcher learns their craft. Sean understands that and knows what it takes to compete in the Big XII as well. He has an intuitive feel for the players he coaches and will be great with the analytics of pitching and continuing each player's development. Our pitching staff and team just got better with Sean's transition to the pitching coach."
For the past eight seasons under Pierce, Allen has served as the recruiting coordinator and worked primarily with hitters and infielders. Pierce took on a similar move while as an assistant coach at Rice. An outfielder during his playing days and the Owls' hitting coach from 2003-05, Pierce moved to the role of pitching coach in 2006.
