Jose Cruz (minors06)

Jose Enrique Cruz

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.
• School Rice University
• High School Bellaire (TX) High School

• Born July 13, 1981 in Houston, TX USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

The son of Jose Cruz Sr., brother of Jose Cruz Jr., nephew of Hector Cruz and Tommy Cruz, uncle of Trei Cruz and cousin of Cirilo Cruz and Alberto Cruz, infielder Jose E. Cruz (also known as Enrique) played several years of minor league ball.

Originally selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 49th round of the 2000 amateur draft, Cruz did not sign, opting to attend Rice University instead. After hitting 16 home runs as a sophomore, he was taken by the Cincinnati Reds in the 13th round of the 2002 amateur draft. He remained at Rice, who went on to win the 2003 College World Series (and was named to the All-Tournament team at 2B), and then was chosen by the New York Yankees in the 14th round of the 2003 amateur draft, one pick before Ian Kennedy.

Cruz began his pro career with the Staten Island Yankees in 2003, hitting .285/.363/.385 while fielding .959 as a part-time second baseman. He was the primary second baseman for the 2004 Battle Creek Yankees (.231/.329/.364, 13 SB, 5 CS, .967 FLD% at 2B) and got into 9 games for the Tampa Yankees (3 for 26, 7 BB, SB, HR). He opened 2005 with Tampa (4 for 30, 4 BB) and the Trenton Thunder (going 2 for 5 with a double and a walk).

He was then dealt to the Chicago Cubs and hit a meek .197/.282/.326 in 47 games for the Daytona Cubs, though he was 6-for-6 in steals. He moved to the New York Mets chain in 2006, hitting .278/.360/.406 in 98 games for the St. Lucie Mets and .200/.341/.286 in 16 games for the Binghamton Mets. He hit a meek .208/.316/.330 for Binghamton in 2007. He then moved to the York Revolution of the independent Atlantic League. He hit .285/.378/.398 with 64 runs and 14 steals (caught once) in 109 games in 2008 to end his career.

Since his playing days, Cruz has been a coach and one of the operators of Cruz Baseball, along with his father and brother.