NELSON CRUZ NEWS

Nelson Cruz homers twice as Twins roll past Tigers 15-6; Shoemaker gets win in team debut Cruz and Willians Astudillo both had three hits as the Twins won their third consecutive game.

APRIL 6, 2021 • STARTRIBUNE.COM

LEADING OFF: Nats set to start short-handed vs Braves

The Washington Nationals are finally set to start their season, hosting Atlanta after their three-game series against the New York Mets was postponed by a coronavirus outbreak

APRIL 6, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Belts grand slam in win Cruz went 3-for-6 with a double, two home runs, five RBI and three runs scored Monday against Detroit.

Impact Cruz crushed his first home run of the season in the second inning, a grand slam that put the Twins ahead 6-0. He would leave the yard again in the top of the fifth with nobody on base. The veteran slugger is off to a hot start despite sitting out the first series of the season due to the lack of a DH slot in Milwaukee.

APRIL 6, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Cruz 2 HRs, including slam as Twins rout Tigers; Baddoo slam DETROIT (AP) — Nelson Cruz hit a grand slam after a near miss and added a solo homer and a double, Matt Shoemaker held Detroit hitless into...

APRIL 6, 2021 • OLEANTIMESHERALD.COM

LEADING OFF: Nats set to start short-handed vs Braves

The Washington Nationals are finally set to start their season, hosting the Atlanta Braves after their three-game series against the New York Mets was postponed by a coronavirus ou...

APRIL 6, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Twins: Ageless wonder Nelson Cruz nearly hit 2 grand slams in same at-bat (Video) Nelson Cruz owns the Detroit Tigers, and his dominance continued on Monday afternoon. Per The Athletic's Cody Stavenhagen, Nelson Cruz enter...

APRIL 5, 2021 • FANSIDED.COM

Cruz 2 HRs, including slam as Twins rout Tigers; Baddoo slam

Nelson Cruz hit a grand slam, a solo home run and a double as the Minnesota Twins rolled past the Detroit Tigers 15-6

APRIL 5, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nelson Cruz, Matt Shoemaker ignite Twins’ 15-6 rout of Tigers DETROIT — Nelson Cruz began the 2021 season on the bench, serving as a cheerleader for his teammates during much of the Twins’ first series...

APRIL 5, 2021 • TWINCITIES.COM

Cruz's slam just foul ... then he hits real one A would-be grand slam hooked just foul Monday afternoon at Comerica Park. So Twins slugger Nelson Cruz kept swinging. The picture of persist...

APRIL 5, 2021 • MLB.COM

Won't start Sunday Cruz is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Brewers.

Impact As expected, Cruz will remain on the bench for the third game in a row to begin the season with no designated hitter available in Milwaukee. Cruz, who has gone 1-for-2 as a pinch hitter, should pick up his first start of 2021 in Monday's game in Detroit.

APRIL 4, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Sits again in NL park Cruz remains stuck on the bench Saturday in Milwaukee.

Impact Cruz hasn't played an inning in the field since 2018, and there's no reason to believe that will change this year. He struck out as a pinch hitter in Thursday's season opener and won't get the chance to come to the plate more than once in this one. Cruz should make his first start of the season when the Twins return to an American League park Monday against the Tigers.

APRIL 3, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

This Date in Baseball

This Date in Baseball-April 5

APRIL 1, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Stuck on bench in NL park Cruz won't start Thursday's Opening Day game against the Brewers.

Impact With the Twins' first series taking place in a National League park, there's no place for Cruz to play. He hasn't played a single inning in the field since joining Minnesota in 2019, and that's unlikely to suddenly change in his age-40 season. He'll be limited to pinch-hit at-bats until the Twins head to Detroit on Monday.

APRIL 1, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Batting third in spring finale Cruz will start at designated hitter and bat third in Tuesday's Grapefruit League finale against the Pirates.

Impact Manager Rocco Baldelli will roll out a full lineup of projected regulars against Pittsburgh right-hander JT Brubaker, so Cruz tentatively appears on track to begin the season as the Twins' No. 3 hitter. Cruz may not get the opportunity to pick up his first start of the season until next week, however, as the Twins won't have a designated hitter available for their three-game series in Milwaukee that begins Thursday. The lack of a universal DH in 2021 means that Cruz's fantasy managers will have to track his matchups closely each week before setting lineups, but the 40-year-old should still prove to be a solid investment, given the year-to-year consistency he's shown in his power production and batting average. Cruz heads into Tuesday's spring finale with a .244/.244/.415 slash line over 14 Grapefruit League games.

MARCH 30, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Uber deal: Twins lock up pitcher Dobnak for long term

The Minnesota Twins have signed right-hander Randy Dobnak to a $9.25 million, five-year contract

MARCH 29, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Twins' Nelson Cruz has seemingly conquered Father Time, one grueling rest and recovery routine at a time "Every single day I show up to the ballpark, I want to be my best." Inside Cruz's rest and recovery routine that keeps his body young.

MARCH 24, 2021 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Diamondbacks' Gallen has sore forearm, might miss opener

The Arizona Diamondbacks might be missing their best pitcher on opening day

MARCH 23, 2021 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Combining clubhouses has Twins looking for familiar feeling: 'It feels more as a team' "We have time to talk and to meet the news guys that we’re playing with," Nelson Cruz says of having one clubhouse for the entire team.

MARCH 22, 2021 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Twins pitchers take batting practice to prepare for opening weekend Kenta Maeda excited about the prospect of getting to the plate, but Nelson Cruz isn't.

MARCH 18, 2021 • STARTRIBUNE.COM

Homers in spring debut Cruz went 1-for-3 with a home run in his spring debut Wednesday. It's the second straight spring and fifth time in eight seasons he's homered in his first game of spring training,...

Impact Cruz may play sparingly in spring training to keep the 40-year old fresh for the season, but he showed it won't take many at bats for him to be ready. Cruz has a .308/.394/.626 slash line with 57 homers, 32 doubles and 141 RBI in 173 games over the past two seasons as the Twins' designated hitter.

MARCH 4, 2021 • ROTOWIRE

Boomstick arrives with homer in spring debut FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Sure, it's Spring Training, and sure, he hadn't taken a competitive at-bat in five months, but you still can't give Nels...

MARCH 3, 2021 • MLB.COM

Twins' Nelson Cruz on watered-down baseballs: 'I'll be good' The veteran designated hitter is returning to lead the Bomba Squad with a one-year, $13 million deal.

FEBRUARY 11, 2021 • STARTRIBUNE.COM

Twins make Nelson Cruz’s return official: ‘I’m back where I want to be’ Nelson Cruz stood on a snow-covered Target Field last week, his shoes half coated with white powder, and raised both thumbs, a smile plaster...

FEBRUARY 10, 2021 • TWINCITIES.COM

Twins' Nelson Cruz on watered-down baseballs: 'I'll be good' The veteran designated hitter is returning to lead the Bomba Squad with a one-year, $13 million deal.

FEBRUARY 10, 2021 • STARTRIBUNE.COM

Cruz, returning to Twins: 'Retirement is not on my mind' After re-upping with the Minnesota Twins for what will be his 17th major league season, Nelson Cruz clearly was not ready to entertain the i...

FEBRUARY 10, 2021 • STARTRIBUNE.COM