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Nelson Cruz is on record-breaking pace with MVP implications

By Connor Muldowney

Apr 19, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Nelson Cruz (23) celebrates after sitting a solo homer against the Texas Rangers during the first inning at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 19, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Nelson Cruz (23) celebrates after sitting a solo homer against the Texas Rangers during the first inning at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /
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It’s only mid-April and people are already starting to talk about if Seattle Mariners’ Nelson Cruz can keep up his hot-streak enough to win MVP.

Nelson Cruz has overcome a ton to get where he is today. Sure, he may have put himself in the position to be an untrustworthy athlete by taking performance-enhancers, but he has proven to be clean in recent years and his play is reflective of him as a new person.

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Cruz, a 10-year vet, has been one of the best sluggers in baseball for the past decade, showing his power and ability to get on base for a number of teams. Getting his first real shot, the Texas Rangers took a chance on the young outfielder as he played in over 100 games in each of his final five seasons in the Lone Star State.

After Cruz showed that he could hit with average as well as power, the Rangers gave him a larger role and he delivered accordingly.

The Baltimore Orioles were the next team to give him a shot after Texas let him go following the PED scandal that saw him suspended in 2013. Many teams were after him despite the suspension, but the Orioles put down the best one-year offer that Cruz couldn’t pass up.

It was mind-boggling how well he performed after such a long suspension, hitting .271 with a career-high 40 homers and 108 RBI for the playoff-bound Orioles.

Apr 19, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Nelson Cruz (23) hits a walk-off RBI-single against the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning at Safeco Field. Seattle defeated Texas, 11-10. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 19, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Nelson Cruz (23) hits a walk-off RBI-single against the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning at Safeco Field. Seattle defeated Texas, 11-10. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /

Now that he has moved on to another team yet again with the Seattle Mariners, Cruz is making the most of his seemingly-endless opportunities. The slugger is off to his best career start and is making people believe that last season was no fluke.

Could this be Cruz’s MVP year?

Why he will sizzle out

Cruz is hot right now, yes, but there is absolutely no way he stays this hot, right? I mean, it’s a 162-game season and we are only two weeks in. He has only hit over .300 twice in his 10-year career and one of those years was one in which he played just 31 games with 115 at-bats.

This guy is a boom or bust type of hitter. He will strike out a bunch of times while he tries to swing for the fence. His swing seems so effortless at times, but when he misses, you can tell he’s trying to knock it out of the park every time.

Plus, he’s 34 years old. Not all players are Victor Martinez, getting better with age.

Why he will stay hot

There has been no indication of a slow-down any time soon. Yeah, I understand it’s only two weeks into the year, but a start like this could just go to show that a monster season is ahead.

With the momentum that he’s carrying right now, everything he’s hitting must look like a beach ball thrown over home plate by opposing pitchers to him. Hitting .354 with eight homers and 14 RBI through 12 games is no joke — nor is it a fluke.

If he was a rookie, I would say he would surely sizzle out, but he’s been a pro for so long and he knows how to handle success without letting it get to his head.

What I think he will do

I doubt Cruz will keep up his .354 average all season long since he’s much more of a power hitter than a guy who makes contact and puts the ball into play. I’m not saying he can’t do that, but he’s swinging for the fences more often than not.

He is on an absolute tear right now, hitting six home runs in his last seven games and is currently on pace to hit 108 home runs and drive in 189 RBI. That’s an unrealistic number, but I do think he will break some of his career-highs and be the first 50-home run hitter since Chris Davis in 2013.

Cruz will be an MVP candidate to the final weeks of the season, but playing at Safeco Field might gobble up some long fly balls of his that would be home runs in other parks.

It all depends on where the Mariners finish in the standings. If the Mariners win the division and he remains the hot hitter he is now, an MVP will be in his future.

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