Trombley settles in with Twins after inauspicious college career

ARLINGTON, Tex. - Twice in his career, Mike Trombley has looked to the split-finger fastball as a means of becoming a better pitcher.

The first time, he was a kid at Duke, trying anything to turn around a career high on talent but low on results. The second time, he was also attempting to revive his career, but this time in the major leagues.

What a difference eight years can make.

Eight years marked the transformation from a pitcher with promise to a pitcher with results. It didn't come easy.

Trombley, like many of his current major-league peers, did manage to write himself into the NCAA record books a couple of times during his college career. But not for wins or strikeouts; he set the mark in 1989 for most hit batsmen in a game and season.

His road to the big leagues was also fairly standard for a pitcher. Trombley left Duke after three years when he was drafted in the 14th round by the Minnesota Twins in '89. He is now ingrained in the Twins pitching staff as a fairly reliable middle reliever, with the third-lowest ERA on the team.

This is the same Mike Trombley who finished his Blue Devil career with a 6-22 record. No, that's not written backwards. And his 5.11 ERA is no mistake either.

"I might have had the worst college record of anyone in the major leagues," Trombley said.

Regardless, the Springfield, Mass., native admits he didn't pitch well. Besides his dubious hit-by-pitch distinction, he doesn't rank among the top five on any of Duke's career pitching lists. Quinton McCracken, the Blue Devils' other current pro baseball player, ranks in the top three in almost every major category.

"I was a little disappointed in how I threw the ball in college," Trombley said. "I think half of it was having a lot of fun at Duke, and half of it was just not playing all that well.

"When I first came in, we had a new coach and a lot of young guys on the team. We had a tough role-we played hard, but our record in terms of wins and losses wasn't that good."

Trombley's talent was still apparent enough to catch the Twins' attention in the spring of '89. He made the difficult decision of leaving college early to accept Minnesota's offer and head for the minor leagues, though he returned to Duke the following two fall semesters to complete his undergraduate degree.

Upon his arrival in the Twins' organization, Trombley's biggest challenge was convincing himself that he truly belonged. Guys with 6-22 records don't typically stick around too long.

"When I first went to pro ball, I really thought to myself, 'If I can't win in college, how am I going to win in professional baseball," Trombley said. "Mainly it was just confidence for me. Once I got to pro ball and found out that I could compete with these guys, I realized that they were not much better than I am."

At the time, Trombley was primarily a fastball-curveball pitcher. Though he was not able to overpower hitters as he did in college, Trombley moved his way through the minor leagues in four years, making stops at single, double and triple-A along his journey. He started in almost every game he pitched.

In '92, Trombley got the call.

"I was a little surprised he made it up as quick as he did," Traylor said. "It's very difficult to do. He really breezed up through each level."

During his first four seasons in the pros, Trombley alternated time as a reliever and starter. Seven of 10 appearances in his rookie campaign were in the starter's role, pitching for a struggling team that won the World Series just one year earlier.

But Trombley started only 10 of 68 outings during the next two seasons. His ERA ballooned to a career-high 6.33 in '94 and, though he was 8-6 with two saves during that stint, he was particularly susceptible to the long ball, surrendering nearly two home runs per nine innings.

Trombley began '95 in Triple-A Salt Lake City, where he excelled as a starter. He was the Twins' Minor League Pitcher of the Month for May, going 4-0 with a 1.69 ERA in six starts.

He rejoined Minnesota June 8 as a starter but struggled again, compiling a 4-8 record in 18 starts. Trombley still gave up an abundance of gopher balls, and his walk-to-strikeout ratio was no longer near its previous standard of 1:2.

Salt Lake City was once again Trombley's opening-day home in '96. But this time it appeared as if he'd never again return to the big leagues. His fastball and curveball were no longer fooling pro hitters.

So Trombley began to tinker with the split-finger fastball, a pitch he had experimented with years ago at Duke.

"I got sent down last year, and I really kind of wondered where my career was going," Trombley said. "But once I started throwing the split finger, it really became a great pitch for me. It's made all the difference-it's made my other pitches better."

Traylor said Trombley was able to improve in the minors due to his eagerness to learn and willingness to be coached, a quality many current major leaguers often appear to lack.

With a third pitch added to his repertoire, Trombley was better equipped to battle major league hitters. In addition, Twins' manager Tom Kelly decided to use Trombley exclusively out of the bullpen, beginning with his first appearance last year on June 3.

Trombley flourished, picking up a win with two scoreless innings in his first game, and he went on to win his first three outings. He was primarily a set-up man but also closed, converting six-of-nine save chances.

"I think [the split finger] has helped him out quite a bit," Texas first baseman Will Clark said. "Now he's got a pitch that when he comes in in relief, he can get a double play ball or a strikeout. He's become a good pitcher."

Trombley closed out '96 with a record of 5-1 and a career-best 3.01 ERA. But his control also improved, walking only 25 and surrendering just two home runs in 68 innings.

He finally settled into the middle relief role and became a staple in the Twins' bullpen.

"[Being a middle reliever] has been most effective for me," Trombley said. "I was a starter all through minor leagues, but I think I found my spot, found my niche. Especially at the end of last year, being a middle reliever has really worked out well."

Trombley entered this season as Minnesota's right-handed set-up man. Through 25 appearances, the carry-over from last year's breakthrough largely endures. His 4.17 ERA is third-lowest on the team; the Twins are currently mired in last place in the American League Central Division.

"There have been some games this year that he's pitched just really terrific in, and there are games where he's been pretty ugly," Kelly said. "He's done a good job for the most part. He still has some times where he really struggles.

"He's not really in a role-he's in the bullpen. We use him whenever we have to use him, but he's in the bullpen."

As Kelly alluded, after five seasons Trombley has finally earned a fairly secure roster spot with Minnesota. Middle relievers never achieve the recognition of a starter or closer, but Trombley is satisfied with finding the spot that will allow him to contribute to a major-league team.

The stats bear out. For his career, Trombley is 11-2 in relief, 10-15 as a starter.

Regardless, for a pitcher who once lost almost three-fourths of his games in college, Mike Trombley will never forget how far he's come and how quickly it could all slip away.

"I don't think I can ever feel too comfortable," Trombley said. "I don't want to relax, but I feel very confident in my ability now that I can stay here and contribute and not really worry too much about going up and down but just go out and play."