Juan Cruz (baseball)

Juan Cruz
Cruz with the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pitcher
Born: (1978-10-15) October 15, 1978 (age 38) Bonao, Dominican Republic
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 21, 2001, for the Chicago Cubs
Last MLB appearance
August 19, 2012, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
MLB statistics
Win–loss record	38–36
Earned run average	4.05
Strikeouts	659
Teams
Chicago Cubs (2001–2003) Atlanta Braves (2004) Oakland Athletics (2005) Arizona Diamondbacks (2006–2008) Kansas City Royals (2009–2010) Tampa Bay Rays (2011) Pittsburgh Pirates (2012)

Juan Carlos Cruz (born October 15, 1978) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher.

Cruz attended Janaco Bonao High School in Bonao.

Cruz was signed for the Chicago Cubs by scout Jose Serra. He began his pro career with the Cubs' Rookie Level team, the Mesa Cubs, where he went 2–4 with a 6.10 earned run average and 36 strikeouts in only 41.1 innings pitched. Cruz went 5–6 with a 5.94 for Chicago's Single-A affiliate, the Eugene Emeralds, in 1999. Cruz split the 2000 season between the Single-A Lansing Lugnuts and Daytona Cubs. His combined stats for the year included an 8–5 record, a 3.27 ERA and 160 K's in 25 games and 140.1 innings. He also threw three complete games. Cruz made his big league debut for the Cubs on August 21, 2001, against the Milwaukee Brewers. He went 3–1 with a 3.22 ERA in his first 8 starts, and also recorded his first two major league hits on October 2. One of his highlights for the beginning of Cruz's season was that he was named to the All-Star Futures Team. Cruz went 3–11 with a 3.98 ERA in 45 games in 2002. He also picked up his first career save. He went 2–7 with a 6.05 ERA in 2003 in 6 starts with the Cubs. He started the year in the Cubs bullpen but was sent down to the Iowa Cubs on June 3. On Opening Day in 2003, Cruz struck out 6 consecutive batters, becoming only the second Cubs reliever to do so. On March 25, 2004, Cruz, along with Steve Smyth, was traded to the Atlanta Braves for Andy Pratt and Richard Lewis.