Troy Tulowitzki says he won't try to force a trade from the Rockies, for now, at least

LOS ANGELES – Deconstruct the notion that Troy Tulowitzki might wish to continue his baseball somewhere other than in Denver, and what you have is a man who has turned 30, whose final prime seasons are coming, whose team has won four games in a month and probably lacks the depth to make anything more than a cosmetic recovery, and whose body appears finally capable of remaining upright. He's played in a lot of games over the years that don't count for much. He's watched a lot of others.

There's also the argument Tulowitzki has contributed to the Colorado Rockies' losing battle with relevance. He does, after all, account for a good portion of the payroll (and will for another six seasons) and he does have a knack for injury. Doesn't he then have a responsibility to the rebuild, the reload, the restoration, whatever they're going to call this? And what of the club's responsibility to, you know, find some freakin' pitching once in a while?

Tulowitzki met over lunch Thursday with his San Fernando Valley-based agent, who'd told the New York Post this week that part of the conversation likely would address the idea Tulowitzki should perhaps finish his career elsewhere. Like in a place with a winning baseball team. You could conclude this was one of the more important meals in Colorado sports history, if you could think of any others. Maybe John Elway had an omelet the morning before The Drive.

Tulowitzki does not seem the snit sort. He shows up, he outworks most, he plays hard, cares more, and takes losing worse than just about anyone. By late Thursday afternoon, he stood at his locker and said there'd be no ultimatum put to the Rockies. He seemed almost sheepish that he'd have to address this in the hours after the Rockies had lost their 11th consecutive game. Teammates watched from a distance. Tulowitzki probably wished he could, too.

"There's no angry guy in a clubhouse that says, 'I demand a trade,' " Tulowitzki said. "I'm focused on becoming the best player I can be."

Tomorrow will bring what tomorrow brings. But, today, for the moment, right now, Tulowitzki could be only what he expects of himself. That is, a good teammate, a good ballplayer, a loyal employee, all those traits that put him on the short list – with Todd Helton and Larry Walker – of the best Rockies ever. On the other hand, the Rockies sure have been terrible lately, and there are those lonesome nights in hotel rooms when, he admitted, he wonders if his loyalty would be better spent on his team or himself. It's a fair debate. A human one. In the same situation, who would not be conflicted?

"I have mixed emotions at times," Tulowitzki said. "I don't know what's best for my career."

He'd always said that winning in Denver in that uniform, some version of which he's worn for 11 years, was his ideal.

"I still hold onto that," he said. "At the same time, if we can't win here, is it better for my career to go [someplace else]? I battle with that the whole time."

Maybe that's hard to hear in Denver, where the owner has moments of incivility and the general manager is a rookie. A trade of Tulowitzki – be it to St. Louis, New York, San Diego, Anaheim, Seattle, Los Angeles even – could change the direction of the franchise. It could deepen the hole. And what of a clubhouse that looks up to Tulo? Just Wednesday, when the Rockies were headed to another loss, manager Walt Weiss left before a game in Anaheim for an emergency appendectomy, starting pitcher Jordan Lyles left in the first inning when he was struck in the pitching hand by a line drive and first baseman Justin Morneau left in the eighth inning when he experienced dizziness. Bad stuff keeps happening. They need Tulowitzki more than ever.

What would a trade say to the young men left behind? To the men trying to follow Tulowitzki's examples of dedication to body and craft? What does Tulowitzki owe to them? What does the team owe to them? To, say, Nolan Arenado?

"I'd be upset," Arenado said. "I'd be really disappointed I wouldn't be able to play with him anymore, because he's been a mentor in my life and a mentor in my baseball career. I don't want him to go. But, I can't control that.

"Listen, guys of Troy's stature, they want to win. And that's our main focus. Obviously that rumor's going around because we're not winning. I understand why people are talking. …I want what's best for him. The main thing is we've got to figure a way to turn this around."

A seemingly good man torn by a healthy conscience and a desperation to win, Tulowitzki must choose his course. He could stay and live with what comes. He could try to force his way free and live with that, too. Does he have the stomach to request a trade? Does he have the heart to stick it out?

For now, he stays.

"Whatever happens on the Rockies' end happens, but for me to sit here and try to force my way out of here, that's not the case," he said. "I don't think it's fair to my teammates and the relationships I've built here to take that route."

That's the answer today.

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