Thursday night’s Twins-White Sox game at Guaranteed Rate Field went quite poorly for Chicago’s Lucas Giolito, and quite well for Minnesota’s Nelson Cruz.
Giolito entered the game with a 3.12 ERA, and exited the game with a 3.54 ERA after allowing seven earned runs in five innings. The right-hander gave up four home runs, with three of those dingers coming in Nelson Cruz’s first three plate appearances. Cruz cranked three taters for a combined distance of 1,336 feet against
Cruz is putting together a fantastic season at the age of 39, with 25 homers and a .969 OPS.
March 31, 2008: Rangers designate Nelson Cruz for assignment.
April 4, 2008: Cruz clears waivers.
He's hit 370 home runs since nobody wanted him.
— David Schoenfield (@dschoenfield) July 26, 2019
He’s certainly not the only Twins hitter hitting for a ton of power this season; Minnesota’s .503 slugging percentage is far and away the best mark in the majors. And in the 10-3 win Thursday night, they hit five homers for the ninth time this season. That’s an MLB record, and we’re still in July.