Nelson Cruz injury update: Twins slugger (wrist) heads to injured list

Marc Lancaster

Nelson Cruz injury update: Twins slugger (wrist) heads to injured list image

Nelson Cruz's return to Seattle this weekend will be far more low-key than originally expected. 

The Twins designated hitter, who hasn't played since Sunday due to a left wrist strain, landed on the 10-day injured list Friday. The move is retroactive to May 14, so he'll be eligible to return in a week. 

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The announcement came hours before the second game of a four-game series in Seattle, where Cruz starred the last four years before signing a one-year deal with Minnesota in January. 

The 38-year-old has a slash line of .270/.354/.508 with nine doubles and seven home runs through 35 games as part of a powerful lineup that has kept the Twins in first place through much of the season. 

Cruz was an All-Star during three of his four seasons with the Mariners and averaged 41 home runs per year in Seattle. 

Minnesota called up 22-year-old infielder Luis Arraez from Triple-A Rochester to take Cruz's roster spot. Arraez doesn't bring any power to the table, with six career home runs in six minor league seasons, but he has a .331 batting average in the minors and has never hit worse than .309 in a season. 

 

Marc Lancaster

Marc Lancaster Photo

Marc Lancaster joined The Sporting News in 2022 after working closely with TSN for five years as an editor for the company now known as Stats Perform. He previously worked as an editor at The Washington Times, AOL’s FanHouse.com and the old CNNSportsIllustrated.com, and as a beat writer covering the Tampa Bay Rays, Cincinnati Reds, and University of Georgia football and women’s basketball. A Georgia graduate, he has been a Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2013.