Ultimately, Trombley elected to concentrate on baseball and attended Duke University in North Carolina. During summers, he returned to Massachusetts and played in the Cape Cod League.
By his junior year at Duke, he was selected as captain, and it was becoming increasingly possible an MLB team might draft him.
The Twins drafted the six-foot-two, 200-pound Mike Trombley in the 14th round of the 1989 MLB June Amateur Draft.
He immediately went to work in the Twins minor league system – first at Kenosha in the Class A Midwest League, then to High-A Visalia in California. He had a total of seven wins and three losses in that first minor league season.
In the next three seasons, the right-handed starter pitched a lot of games and a lot of innings. He won 10 games or more each season from 1990 to 1992 while spending a year at the Class-A, Double-A, and Triple-A levels.
He led his league in strikeouts in 1991 and 1992.
He developed well enough to be called to the major leagues and debuted for the Twins on August 19, 1992, against Cleveland.
He pitched one inning and allowed one hit in a 5-1 loss. He pitched two more relief outings, then got seven starts with the Twins to close the year.
His first win came on September 7 against the Angels. Trombley’s mound opponent that day was former Twin Bert Blyleven.
Trombley allowed only two runs in six innings that day while the Twins scored five off Blyleven and won the game 7-2. After the season, Trombley would be named the Twins Rookie of the Year.
In 1993, Trombley pitched for the Twins all season. He started 10 games and appeared as a reliever 34 times. He finished the season with a 6-6 record and a 4.88 ERA.
His biggest issue was allowing too many hits – 10.3 per nine innings pitched. His WHIP was 1.504 – simply too high. But he had completed his first big league season. Perhaps he could build off that season.
In 1994, he again made the Twins out of spring training.
He pitched entirely from the bullpen that season, and his ERA ballooned to 6.33. 1994 would be his worst season, posting a negative WAR (-0.4). From May to July, he was back in Triple-A. He threw more innings in Triple-A Salt Lake than with the Twins.
By 1995, he was no longer considered a prospect and was perhaps on his last legs in the Twins organization. He did not make the Opening Day roster. In Triple-A, he was again being used as a starter and posted solid numbers through early June, when he was recalled to the Twins.
He continued to be used primarily as a starter in the majors that season, but his numbers were not major league caliber.
His WHIP was again over 1.5, and his ERA was again too high – 5.62. Was he running out of time to prove himself? He was now 28 years old and had been primarily ineffective at the major league level.
Trombley was taken off the 40-man roster after 1995. He came into 1996 spring training as a non-roster invitee and learned a split-fingered forkball from All-Star teammate Rick Aguilera, which helped him make the team and turn his career around.
The Twins also changed their usage of Trombley. He was now strictly a reliever and developed into a useful one. In 1996, he pitched 68 2/3 innings over 43 games and had an ERA of 3.01.
Better yet, he reduced the number of hits allowed, resulting in a much more palatable 1.252 WHIP. Maybe Trombley had found his niche.
From 1997-99, Trombley was solid in the bullpen. He threw 266 1/3 innings in 219 games during those three seasons. His ERA of 4.09 was not bad, considering this was the height of the steroid era.
His ERA+ was better than average at 118.
He even became the primary closer in 1999 and saved 24 ball games on a team that won only 65. But with that bit of success and the paltry payrolls of the Metrodome-era Twins, success just meant it was time for the player to move to greener pastures. During that offseason, the Twins offered Trombley a three-year, $5.2 million contract, but the Baltimore Orioles signed him to $7.75 million over those three seasons.
Trombley’s 2000 season was good – a 115 ERA+ over 72 innings as a setup man. 2001 was a little better, but he was traded to the Dodgers.
In both of Trombley’s seasons in Baltimore, the Orioles finished in fourth place in the American League East.
The 2001 Dodgers were in the playoff hunt, so they acquired Trombley at the trade deadline.
Trombley was not the missing link; the Dodgers faltered down the stretch and missed the playoffs.
Trombley had a bad start to 2002. He did not appear in any games and was released by the Dodgers on April 8. As always, the Twins needed pitching, so they signed Trombley after his release.
By May 15, he was pitching in major league games again, but it would not last long.
Here is where we finally get to my opening thought about seeing and feeling the end for a seasoned veteran.
- May 15, 2002: Trombley returns and pitches 1/3 of an inning. He allowed one hit but no runs in the seventh inning of an 8-6 victory over Kansas City. Good enough.
- May 16, 2002: A 14-5 blowout win for the Twins against the Royals. Trombley finished the game by pitching the ninth inning. He got the first batter on a groundout. Then, he allowed a double, a home run, and another groundout. Then, a single and another double, but got the final batter to line out. Two runs allowed and lots of hard-hit balls. Hmmm.
- May 17, 2002: The night I called his career over while watching. The Twins had traveled to New York to face the Yankees. The Twins were down 8-3, but they scored six in the sixth inning to take a 9-8 lead. The Yankees scored one in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings. Neither team scored in the tenth inning… the 11th… the 12th, or the 13th. Finally, the Twins broke out for three runs in the 14th inning. They have completed the comeback on the road at Yankee Stadium, right? Trombley had pitched the prior two games, and I’m sure the Twins had no plans to use him for a third day in a row. But they had already used seven pitchers in the 13 prior innings, so they had no choice but to turn to Trombley for the 14th. He allowed a single to Shane Spencer but got the second batter to fly out. OK. But then Derek Jeter hit a single, and Trombley walked Bernie Williams. It might have been during the walk to Williams when I started thinking, “Trombley’s done. He doesn’t have it anymore.” Or it might have been a minute later when Jason Giambi’s blast to right-center flew through the New York City sky before clearing the wall for a walk-off grand slam. Whenever it was, I knew it was the end for Trombley. He had given up four runs in 12 pitches – astonishingly fast. I remember feeling kind of sad for him. His life was going to change. He had lived the dream for 11 years, but it was over. Or was it?
- May 18, 2002: Trombley lived to see another day. He closed out the following day’s game, a 6-2 Yankees win.
- May 27, 2002: Trombley allowed one run on two hits in 1 1/3 innings. The Twins won 5-2 against Texas.
- June 3, 2002: Trombley must have also known he was at the end of the road. He asked for and was granted his release. The Twins granted the request, and Trombley’s MLB career was over. He pitched just two more games after I called his career done.
Mike Trombley had a record of 37-47 in his career with 44 saves. He pitched in 509 games and threw 795 2/3 innings. His career ERA was 4.48 (104 ERA+), and his WHIP was 1.406. He struck out 672 batters.
Since he retired from baseball in 2002, Mike and his wife have owned and operated an investment and retirement planning firm. They have three children and live in Massachusetts.
Do you vividly remember a player’s end like I did of Trombley when you just knew their time had come? I’m not talking about ‘so-and-so sucks, and they need to cut this bum.’
I’m talking about a good player whose skills were eroding, and the results were not good, but then there was one obvious moment when you thought, ‘Yep, he’s done.’ If so, please share your memories in the comments below.
If you like looking back at the Twins past, check out my previous articles at Twins Daily History.
