Veteran Slugger Nelson Cruz Adds Power To The San Diego Padres

San Diego Padres right-handed hitting designated hitter, Nelson Cruz, is playing on his fourth team in four years.

Cruz, who turns 43 in July, has spent parts of 19 years playing for eight major league teams.

A bit of a late bloomer, Cruz didn’t get his first major league assignment until he was 25-years-old. He spent eight games playing for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2005.

About Nelson Cruz:

Nelson Cruz has been a consequential hitter of tremendous impact in his career.

To date, Cruz has hit 461 home runs, and he has driven in 1,311 runs in parts of those 19 seasons.

Since he signed with the New York Mets in 1998, his travels through Major League Baseball have landed Cruz on both National League and American League organizational rosters.

In 1998, the New York Mets signed Cruz as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic.

In August 2000 the Mets traded Cruz to the Oakland Athletics for infielder George Velandia.

In 2006, Cruz was traded by Oakland to the Milwaukee Brewers for pitcher Justin Lehr and infielder Keith Ginter.

Now, Cruz is entering his 20th season on a big league roster.

Cruz has played for:

Milwaukee Brewers-1 year

Texas Rangers- 8 years

Baltimore Orioles-1 year

Seattle Mariners-4 years

Minnesota Twins-3 years

Tampa Bay Rays- 1 year

Washington Nationals- 1 year

San Diego Padres- Currently

Cruz has always been viewed as a feared slugger.

Beginning with his 2009 All Star season hitting 33 homers and driving in 76 runs with the Texas Rangers, Cruz hit 379 home runs from 2009 thru 2019.

Cruz won the prestigious Edgar Martinez Award as the best designated hitter in baseball in 2017 (Mariners) and 2019 (Twins).

Cruz won Silver Slugger Awards in 2015 (Mariners), 2017 (Mariners) 2019 (Twins) and 2020 (Twins).

Cruz was an All Star seven times. His All Star years included 2009 (Rangers), 2013 (Rangers), 2014 (Orioles), 2015 (Mariners), 2017 (Mariners), 2018 (Mariners), and 2021 (Twins).

Few players in baseball have compiled the offensive firepower of Nelson Cruz.

There is little doubt that Cruz can still bring natural power from his strong wrists and quick hands. He is aggressive at the plate, and even though he is advancing in age, he is still mighty dangerous with a bat in his hand.

He has used his buggy whip type swing to make quite a good living feasting on fastballs. However, through the years, as pitchers have fed him a steady diet of off speed breaking balls, Cruz has adjusted to hammer those pitches as well.

Cruz has had great success getting his full weight behind his swing. He tends to pull the ball to left field and left center.

Early in his career, Cruz was not only aggressive at the plate, but he was aggressive on the bases. He had good speed, and he was capable of taking the extra base.

Cruz was a good outfielder in his day, with a strong and reliable arm from right field.

Now, into the twilight of his career, Cruz has been used primarily as a designated hitter. He last played defense on a more regular basis in 2013 with the Texas Rangers. He played the outfield in 102 games that year.

If there is any observable “hole” in Cruz’s swing, it is his inability to stop chasing high velocity pitches up high in the zone. He has chased that pitch in the past, but if a pitcher doesn’t execute the pitch properly, he’ll take the mistake out of the park.

As is often the case, a slugger like Nelson Cruz will have to live with his share of strikeouts, and then some. But to be sure, Cruz hasn’t struck out as much as some other sluggers.

Cruz has a lifetime batting average of .274 in 8,278 plate appearances.

Cruz With The Padres:

Nelson Cruz did not have a very good season last year with the Washington Nationals. As the team’s designated hitter, Cruz had 507 plate appearances. He hit .234/.313/.337/.651 with 10 home runs and 64 RBIs.

The off year with Washington likely cost Cruz a large value contract when he reached free agency this past offseason.

Cruz signed a 1-year contract for $1 million, a far cry from his best financial contract years, and a bargain for the Padres. Last year with the Nationals, Cruz played on a $12 million contract that had a $3 million buyout.

So far this season, Cruz has been platooning with left-handed hitting Matt Carpenter as the Padres designated hitter. Cruz will get his starts against left-handed pitchers.

The season is just beginning, but Nelson Cruz has already had an impact on the San Diego Padres run production.

In his nine games with San Diego so far, Cruz has hit .303/.324/.576/.899 with three doubles, two home runs, and nine RBIs in 34 plate appearances.

Nelson Cruz may not have many years left as a big league hitter. However, his career to date has included a remarkable display of power and run production.

For now, Cruz is playing on the very competitive San Diego Padres, hoping to help his team go deeply into the playoffs. Perhaps, just perhaps, he can help his team get a Championship ring in the process.