*Photo from the New York Times*
Folks, we have a blockbuster trade. The Tampa Bay Rays have acquired DH Nelson Cruz from the Minnesota Twins, along with RHP Calvin Faucher, in exchange for RHP's Joe Ryan and Drew Strotman, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. Both teams have confirmed the deal.
In his 2 1/2 seasons with the Twins, Cruz has experienced a career renaissance. So far this season, he is hitting .294 with a .907 OPS, hitting 19 homers and 50 RBI in 85 games. Cruz also made the all star game this year, representing the Twins in Colorado. In his long career, Cruz has a .278 batting average with a .878 OPS, hitting 436 homers and driving in 1,202 runs in 1,827 games, split between 5 teams.
Cruz said of the trade that "It was shocking. I don't think, even when you're expecting something like this, you can prepare for this. It hit me when they told me and it hit me when I went to the locker room to see my teammates. That's when it really hit me. It was emotional. It's hard to leave family behind, and in this case, move to a different park, go to a different organization. I feel like this was my family and we've been through a lot through the years. Definitely, it's heartbreaking."
Before the trade, Strotman was ranked as the number 17 prospect in the Rays system by MLB pipeline. He has a 3.39 ERA in 58 1/3 innings pitched for Triple A Durham this season, with 62 strikeouts so far this season.
Ryan came in as the 10th rated prospect in the Rays system by MLB pipeline. With Triple A Durham, he has a 3.63 ERA with a 0.79 WHIP this season. Ryan is currently with Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics.
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