Héctor Cruz

Who is Héctor Cruz?

Héctor Louis Cruz Dilan is a former outfielder and third baseman in Major League Baseball. Listed at 5' 11", 170 lb., he batted and threw right handed.

Born in Arroyo, Cruz came from a distinguished baseball family of Puerto Rico. He is the younger brother of former major leaguers José and Tommy Cruz, while his nephew José Jr. also played in the majors.

Cruz played in the Cardinals minor league system from 1970 through 1973. He debuted with the big team in September 1973, but was demoted to the minors again the following year. He returned to the Cardinals in 1975, playing for them three seasons before joining the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds, and in second stint with the Cubs.

In 1975 Cruz was named by The Sporting News as the Minor League Player of the Year, after hitting 29 home runs and 116 runs batted in for the Tulsa Oilers of the American Association.

In 1976, his first regular season with the Cardinals, Cruz topped the National League rookies with 13 homers and 71 RBIs, but also led the league third basemen with 26 errors. Then he switched to outfield, although he did not play regularly for the rest of his career.