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Rays acquire Nelson Cruz in trade with Twins

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated 7/22/21

The Tampa Bay Rays appear set to be the first team to make a major deal ahead of MLB’s trade deadline.

As first reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Rays are finalizing a trade to acquire outfielder Nelson Cruz from the Minnesota Twins.

BREAKING: The Tampa Bay Rays are finalizing a deal to acquire slugger Nelson Cruz from the Minnesota Twins, sources tell ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 22, 2021

It was not immediately clear what the Rays were sending to Minnesota in exchange for Cruz.

The 41-year-old Cruz has long been one of the game’s best sluggers, and that has continued despite the Twins’ struggles. Cruz has 19 home runs on the season and was named an All-Star for the seventh time in his career. The veteran outfielder is on a one-year deal, so the Rays are essentially renting him for the remainder of the season.

With the Twins struggling, Cruz was attracting widespread interest from around the league ahead of the July 31 deadline. The Rays, who sit just one game behind Boston for first place in the AL East, are the ones who have won the race and given themselves a big leg up for the rest of the regular season and the playoffs.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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