From Late Bloomer to Premier Slugger: Nelson Cruz's Remarkable Second Act
It took Nelson Cruz a while to reach the 40-homer plateau. But once it happened, he didn't stop for a while.
I mentioned this on Wednesday but wanted to call it out once more…
As you’ll see below, I’m trying out a new format for newsletters that get delivered on Wednesdays and Fridays. Instead of more of a long-form observation about a certain player’s career, there are three distinct sections below:
An observation about a player (which is home run-related, of course).
Some notable home runs during their career.
At least one spotlight from my blog regarding that player so you can read more.
My goal is to make these succinct so you can get more information/enjoyment in a shorter period, along with an opportunity to dive deeper. Let me know what you think and which format you prefer!
Nelson Cruz’s Incredible Late-Career Power Surge
I love looking at how Nelson Cruz propelled himself up MLB’s all-time home run list thanks to the second half of his career.
From 2005-13, he slugged 30-plus homers just once (33 in 2009). But after spending one year with the Baltimore Orioles in 2014 and leading the league with 40 homers, he went on quite the power binge.
From 2014-23, he surpassed 30 homers on seven occasions, which included four seasons of 40-plus. His career-high mark was 44 in 2015 with the Seattle Mariners.
Nelson Cruz Home Runs Worth Watching
10/10/2011: Nelson Cruz won ALCS Game 2 with the first walk-off grand slam in postseason history.
10/15/2011: He hit his sixth homer of the ALCS, which set a new MLB record for the most homers in a single postseason series.
7/17/2017: The right-handed slugger hit his 300th career home run.
4/10/2022: Cruz’s first homer in a Nationals uniform was the 450th of his career. He’d eventually hang up his spikes with 464 taters.
Nelson Cruz Blog Spotlight
Cruz only spent four years with the Mariners toward the end of his career, but they were incredibly productive. He didn’t hit fewer than 37 in a single season, enjoying two straight 40-homer campaigns to begin his tenure with the club.
He’s featured prominently on Seattle’s single-season home run leaderboard, and his 44 dingers in 2015 are a franchise record at designated hitter.
Thanks to his 2011 ALCS power binge, Cruz is also among MLB’s all-time leaders in homers during that round of the postseason.
P.S. I’ve compiled some of my best blog posts into a book for a comprehensive look at each MLB team’s single-season home run leaderboard. You can buy the ebook on Gumroad (or get it for free as a paid subscriber) and the paperback book on Amazon.
Single-Season HR Performances | Career HR Performances | Postseason HR Leaders | HR Derby Performances
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Enjoying the new format! I always loved Nelson Cruz. This was quite the trade back then:
July 28, 2006: Nelson Cruz traded by the Milwaukee Brewers with Carlos Lee to the Texas Rangers for Julian Cordero (minors), Francisco Cordero, Kevin Mench and Laynce Nix.