In a fight for postseason positioning in game No.163 of the season, the Texas Rangers are keeping all hands on deck as suspended outfielder Nelson Cruz will return to play for the Rangers in the team's one-game playoff against the Tampa Bay Rays Monday night.
Cruz, who served a 50-game suspension for his connection with the Biogenesis clinic in violation of the MLB's Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment program and for his violation of the Basic Agreement, is eligible to return to the playoffs and will do just that when the Rangers (91-71) host the Rays (91-71) at the Ballpark at Arlington Monday night in a do-or-die game to see who will advance to play the Cleveland Indians (92-70) in the one-game wild-card elimination game Wednesday.
A video of Cruz talking about his return can be seen here.
The Rangers announced his return following the team's 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels Sunday which assured that the team finished tied with the Rays, necessitating Monday's game.
"It feels special to be back," Cruz told MLB.com. "It shows they believe in me. I have been working every day to make sure I am ready. I want to play. I want to be a part of this team and help them win championships."
Cruz hasn't appeared in a game since Aug. 4 after the suspensions were handed down on Aug. 5, but was hitting .269 with 27 homers and 76 RBIs through 108 games before the ban.
MLB.com reported that Cruz has been playing in the instructional league, and played in eight games while going 9-for-27 with four doubles, a homer and nine RBIs. The Rangers had planned to announce Cruz would be returning to the team, but only if it made the postseason, after winning Sunday the postseason has come early as the team must face the Rays to see who will advance.
"If we didn't win this week, it would have been a moot point," general manager Jon Daniels said per MLB.com. "There was no sense talking about it. We wanted to stay in the moment."
Daniels said that Cruz handled himself well in the instructional league and it appears as though his teammates will accept him back with open arms.
"That's not my decision, but I would love to have him back," said third baseman Adrian Beltre, who led the AL with 198 hits this season, per MLB.com.
Added outfielder David Murphy: "We have been saying all along that we would want him back. He has a track record here and he has been a great teammate. He made a mistake. We didn't agree with what he did, but everybody makes mistakes. We had a meeting and forgave him. In my mind it's easy to welcome him back at the most important time of the year."
The Rangers went through a bit of a swoon in September dropping their record to 29-21 in Cruz's absence, but the team was able to power through to a chance to play in October and they now have him back as they play their 163rd regular-season game of the year.
The Rays postseason hopes hinge on starting pitcher David Price (9-8, 3.39 ERA) while Texas counters with Martin Perez (10-5, 3.55 ERA).
In the postseason, Cruz has hit .278 with 14 homers and 27 RBIs through 34 games while his .683 slugging percentage is fourth all-time for any player with at least 100 at-bats in the postseason.
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