Taken in the 51st round of the 1989 draft, Turang was roster filler, he was told, according to The Times.
"I had to carry that No. 51 around with me, no excuses, no lies," Turang told The Times in February 1994. "It could have added pressure. I decided to make it motivate me."
Turang spoke to The Times already having 40 major league games under his belt and as he was in good position to get more.
That 51st-round pick ended up seeing time in two major league seasons, 78 games in all. He hit a major league home run and knocked in 15 major league runs.
Turang's carer began as the Mariners took him in that late round of the 1989 draft out of Loyola Marymount University in California.
At Loyola Marymount, Turang went 4 for 4 in a February 1988 game.
He started with the Mariners at short-season Bellingham. He hit .285 in 60 games. He then made high-A San Bernardino in 1990, then AA Jacksonville in 1991.
Turang then played all of 1992 back at Jacksonville. He hit .251 on the year. He hit a home run in a June game, helping his team to a win.
Turang made AAA Calgary in 1993. Then, that August, he made Seattle. He got into 40 games for the Mariners, hitting .250.
Turang returned to the Mariners in 1994. He hit .188 in 38 games. That July, Turang picked up three hits in a game, including the game-winning single in the 10th, according to The Associated Press.
"I was a little nervous," Turang told The AP after that game-winner. "I was trying to hit the ball up the middle or get it up in the air and get the man in from third base."
Turang returned to the minors by the end of July. He played 1995 at AAA Tacoma, then 1996 at AAA Syracuse for the Blue Jays, ending his career.
- Seattle Times, Feb. 27, 1994: Turang 51st Choice, But Second To No One
- Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Associated Press, July 8, 1994: Johnson outduels Sele in M's win
Players/Coaches Featured:1,804
Made the Majors: 846 - 46.9%-X
Never Made Majors: 958-53.1%
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 362
10+ Seasons in the Minors:213
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