Gig Harbor’s Michael Toglia called up by Colorado Rockies
Gig Harbor now has a Major League Baseball player to call its own. Michael Toglia, a Gig Harbor High School grad, has been called up by the Colorado Rockies ahead of their Tuesday matchup against the Atlanta Braves.
Toglia was recently called up to Triple-A Albuquerque and has been on a tear, hitting .333 with seven home runs and seven doubles. Toglia was in town playing against the Tacoma Rainiers in August. In front of dozens of friends, family members and neighbors who came to watch him play in the opening game of the six-game series, Toglia hit a three-run home run in his very first at-bat, on a day that also happened to be his 24th birthday.
“That was pretty storybook,” Toglia told The News Tribune. “That was cool how it worked out like that. Literally my first at-bat … Everyone was there. I’m glad that happened. … That game I hit a home run (in high school), I think in the exact same spot. Literally think I hit the same hedge.”
Toglia was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft with the No. 23 pick, after a successful collegiate career at UCLA. He might not have expected to be called up quite this quickly.
“It’s right there dangling in front of your face,” Toglia said. “But at the same time, you’ve still gotta take care of your work right here, because that’s the only way you’re going to get to that shining light at the end of the tunnel. I shouldn’t say the end of the tunnel, because the goal is to stay up there. Staying up there is the hardest part. … It’s still a really long road ahead. There’s definitely a sense of accomplishment getting there, and that’s really exciting knowing it’s that close.”
This story was originally published August 30, 2022 at 1:23 PM.
