Cruz clubs HR No. 400

Nelson Cruz clubbed his 400th career home run, becoming just the 13th player in DMBL history to reach that mark.

Batting 7th in the DH spot for Arkansas, Cruz did it in style, swatting two home runs with a double for a 3-for-4 game to give him 20 HRs on the year during a 7-1 win in at Hillsborough on July 21. His first dong was a solo shot in the 2nd inning off lefty Kenta Maeda. The history 400th HR came in his next at-bat, a 2-run shot in the 4th. With Arkansas up 6-1 in the 5th, he tried to extend a double down the 1st base line but ended the inning getting gunned down at 3rd with the bases empty.

Now 13th in home runs, Cruz soon could pass Mike Piazza (406) at No. 12 but it will likely take another a season, or two, to break the top 10 with No. 11 Sammy Sosa (446), No. 10 Vlad Guerraro (447), and No. 9 Ken Griffey, Jr. (448). Home runs are his specialty as Cruz doesn't rank nearly as high in other batting categories. He's only approaching the top 30 in hits, RBI, and ABs but has cracked the top 20 in strikeouts.

The 42-year-old Dominican earned MVP honors with Tucson when the King Snakes won their first DMBL World Series crown in 2016. His hey day was spent in Tucson, where he clobbered 241 home runs in seven seasons (2015-2021), including at least 30 in five years 97 across two years (50 in 2019 and 47 in 2020). He broke onto the DMBL spectacularly, smashing 49 HRs and 109 RBI for Amityville in 2010, moving with the franchise to Philly the next year.

After two more seasons with Philly, they dealt to Livingston, along with a 1st and 3rd rounder for Aaron Hill and a 5th rounder after the 2012 season. But he never played a game for Livingston. They shipped him to Las Vegas before the start of the 2013 year in a monster deal involving 3 players and 9 draft picks. Cruz was packaged with RP Jonathan Papelbon, 2nd and 8th rounders in 2014 and those 1st and 3rd rounders in 2013 for SP Matt Moore, 2nd and 8th rounders in 2013, along with Hoboken's 5th in 2013, and their own 1st and 7th rounders in 2014.

After one year in Vegas, Cruz was traded again ahead of 2014 protected lists, going to Blue Ridge with OF Josh Hamilton and SP Marco Estrada for a 4th round selection. Tucson actually never traded for him but that's only because the franchise was known as the Durham Bulls when they made the swap in early 2015. Blue Ridge packaged Cruz with SP Madison Bumgarner and a 9th rounder in 2015 in exchange for SP Sonny Gray (who had won 23 games as a rookie for Durham in 2014), C Evan Gattis and a 5th rounder.