Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN – The Minnesota Twins announced today that they have signed designated hitter Nelson Cruz to a one-year contract with a club option for the 2020 season.
Cruz, 38, played 144 games for the Seattle Mariners last season, hitting .256 (133-for-519) with 18 doubles, 37 home runs, 97 RBI, 70 runs scored, 55 walks and a .342 on-base percentage. The Dominican Republic native has been named to the American League All-Star team six times in his career, including five times in the last six seasons.
The two-time Louisville Slugger Silver Slugger Award winner has played 14 major league seasons with Milwaukee, Texas, Baltimore and Seattle, hitting .274 (1580-for-5758) with 298 doubles, 360 home runs, 1011 RBI and 838 runs scored. Since the start of the 2014 season, he leads all of Major League Baseball with 203 home runs and ranks third with 522 RBI. He has hit at least 37 home runs in each of the last five seasons and recorded at least 100 RBI in three of his last five. Additionally, has the fourth most home runs among active players in Major League Baseball, trailing Albert Pujols (633), Miguel Cabrera (465) and Edwin Encarnacion (380).