Texas Rangers slugger Nelson Cruz was there for anyone to take after several failed attempts with the big club. The Rangers released him, and after the alloted time went by, they were able to send him back to the minors. Then, in 2009, he became amazing. He had seasons of 33, 22, 29 and 24 home-runs and was probably the main reason the Rangers vaulted past Detroit and went to the 2011 World Series. Now, the report coming out of Miami is only a report, and it is not proven yet that he did use PED’s, but it doesn’t look good for the Rangers slugger. Now the report says Cruz did not purchase the drugs until 2012 (MLB.com) but if he was using in 2012, chances are that was not his first time. There was a part of me that thought maybe when he became so good in 2009, but never wanted to believe that he would do such a thing.
And now it is just a waiting game. The legal issues, the truth, the lies, it will all come out in the next few weeks and we will have to wait and see what happens. Like what is the Rangers outfield going to look like if Nelly is suspended? No Hamilton and no Cruz, and the Rangers are looking pretty bleak in the outfield. Will the Rangers re-sign him? Who knows if he gets suspended. All I know is for those of you who thought the steroid era was behind us, you have underestimated the players ability to find new ways to cheat. The only difference is, this time it really hits home because it is one of our own. I hope it is not true, but I am not going to hold my breath that he is innocent.
