FULLERTON, Calif. – With the Major League Baseball playoffs getting started Tuesday, a number of former Titans find themselves in position to make an impact on October baseball for their respective clubs.
Christian Colon was named to the Kansas City Royals 25-man playoff roster for the team's American League Wild Card playoff game against the Oakland Athletics Tuesday night. Colon returned to the team in time for the last game of the regular season on Sunday after a stint on the disabled list and collected two hits in the finale. Overall, Colon played in 21 games for the Royals and batted .333 with 15 hits including five doubles, one triple and six RBI. He scored eight runs and stole two bases.
In his three seasons with the Titans, Colon posted a career .349 batting average with 267 hits, 214 runs scored, 46 doubles, 6 triples, 29 home runs and 147 RBI. Colon ranks fourth in runs on the Titans all-time career record book. He also ranks sixth in hits, hit-by-pitches (44) and eighth in total bases (412).
Fans can watch tonight's game at 5 p.m. pacific time on TBS. Check your local listings.
Should the Royals win, they will advance to play the Los Angeles Angels in the best-of-five American League Division Series. Former Titans pitcher Vinnie Pestano will be eligible to be placed on the postseason roster for the Angels. Pestano was traded to the Angels during the season and shined out of the bullpen, making 12 appearances and posting a miniscule 0.93 ERA in 9.2 innings pitched. He allowed five hits, one run on a solo home run and struck out 13 batters. The Angels have until a few hours prior to the first game of that series to announce their playoff roster. Game one of that series is scheduled for Thursday night at a time to be determined. The game will also air on TBS.
In the National League, former Titans outfielder Gary Brown is eligible to be named to the San Francisco Giants' playoff roster prior to their N.L. Wild Card playoff game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night at 5 p.m. pacific time airing on ESPN. Brown recorded his first hit in the MLB on Saturday after he made his first career start, batting leadoff for the Giants. Brown made seven plate appearances for the Giants after he made his MLB debut on Sept. 3. He had three hits and one RBI.
Brown is the 25th former Titans All-American to play in the Majors. In 2010, he was selected as a First-Team All-American by Baseball America, Yahoo! Sports and the American Baseball Coaches Association after he hit .438 in 50 games for the Titans. His batting average still ranks as the best single-season mark in Titans history.
In addition, Titans legend and 2014 Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame-inductee Tim Wallach will make his second consecutive appearance in the postseason, serving as the bench coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Wallach was named the SCBA Player of the Year as well as an All-American by both The Sporting News and the American Baseball Coaches Association, and later went on to win the Golden Spikes Award and National Player of the Year Award as the nation's top amateur player after leading the Titans to their first national championship in 1979.
Former Titans infielder and member of the 2004 national championship squad Justin Turner is also expected to be named to the Dodgers playoff roster after having the best season of his career. In 109 games, Turner posted a career-best .340 batting average along with a career-high seven home runs after hitting eight round-trippers in his first five seasons combined. Turner also posted an .897 on-base-plus-slugging average after he hit 21 doubles and one triple. He collected 98 hits on the season and also scored 46 runs, the second best mark of his career. The Dodgers begin their NLDS series against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. pacific time on Fox Sports 1. Check your local listings.