Hector Cruz

Outfielder · Career Stats, Bio & Records (1973-1982)

Hector Cruz was an outfielder who played in Major League Baseball from 1973 to 1982 for 4 teams, including the St. Louis Cardinals, a span of 10 seasons. In 624 career games, he hit .225 with 361 hits, 39 home runs, and 200 RBI.

AVG (Batting Average):
Hits divided by at bats. .300 is the traditional mark of an excellent hitter.
HR (Home Runs):
Hits on which the batter circled the bases and scored, almost always by clearing the outfield fence.
RBI (Runs Batted In):
Runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's plate appearance.
OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging):
On-base percentage plus slugging percentage, the quickest single summary of offensive value. .900 or better is star-level.

Data updated

AVG .225
HR 39
RBI 200
H 361
OPS .654
PIV -1,316
Position
Outfielder
Bats / Throws
R / R
Height / Weight
5'11" / 170 lb
Born
4/2/1953 in Arroyo, P.R.
MLB Debut
1973-08-11
Last Game
1982-07-15

Full name: Hector Louis Cruz

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Career Batting Statistics

Hector Cruz — Career Batting Statistics
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
624 1,607 186 361 71 9 39 200 7 176 317 .225 .301 .353 .654 -1,316

Career AVG .225 vs. league average .260 across their career seasons — 13.7% below league average.

Career OBP .301 vs. league average .325 across their career seasons — 7.4% below league average.

Career SLG .353 vs. league average .383 across their career seasons — 7.8% below league average.

Career OPS .654 vs. league average .708 across their career seasons — 7.6% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Career Arc

Click a stat to plot it across every season.

Hector Cruz Stats, Bio & Career Records
Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
1973 SLN NL 11 11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 — — — — 0.0
1975 SLN NL 23 48 7 7 2 2 0 6 0 2 4 .146 — — — — -307.9
1976 SLN NL 151 526 54 120 17 1 13 71 1 42 119 .228 .255 (-11%) .320 (-11%) .360 (-6%) .681 (-8%) -693.4
1977 SLN NL 118 339 50 80 19 2 6 42 4 46 56 .236 .264 (-11%) .329 (-1%) .401 (-11%) .730 (-6%) -298.9
1978 CHN NL 30 76 8 18 5 0 2 9 0 3 6 .237 .257 (-8%) .323 (-18%) .378 (+1%) .702 (-8%) -113.6
1978 SFN NL 79 197 19 44 8 1 6 24 0 21 39 .223 .257 (-13%) .323 (-7%) .378 (-3%) .702 (-5%) -113.6
1979 SFN NL 16 25 2 3 0 0 0 1 0 3 7 .120 — — — — 0.0
1979 CIN NL 74 182 24 44 10 2 4 27 0 31 39 .242 .265 (-9%) .329 (+6%) .397 (-3%) .727 (+1%) 0.0
1980 CIN NL 52 75 5 16 4 1 1 5 0 8 16 .213 .264 (-19%) .326 (-11%) .387 (-14%) .714 (-13%) -152.9
1981 CHN NL 53 109 15 25 5 0 7 15 2 17 24 .229 .255 (-10%) .320 (+3%) .368 (+27%) .688 (+16%) 296.9
1982 CHN NL 17 19 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 2 4 .211 — — — — 0.0
Career · 11 seasons 624 1,607 186 361 71 9 39 200 7 176 317 .225 — — — — -1,383

Lg columns show the league average for that season, with the player's figure as a percentage above or below it. Career totals the seasons listed above.

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

Hector Cruz — Playoff Career Batting
G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 .200

Playoff Batting by Year

Hector Cruz — Playoff Batting by Year
Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
1979 NLCS CIN 2 5 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 .200

Game Log & Splits

View full game log (624 games) →

Per-game data from Retrosheet (regular season, through 2025).

Batting — Home / Away

Hector Cruz — Batting — Home / Away
SplitGABRHHRRBIAVG
Home31682710719425114.235
Away308780791671486.214

Last 10 Games — Batting

Hector Cruz — Last 10 Games — Batting
DateTmOppResABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSO
1982-07-15 CHCATLL 101000000
1982-06-30 CHCPITL 200000001
1982-06-22 CHCPITL 100000000
1982-06-21 CHCPITL 100000000
1982-06-09 CHCPHIL 101000000
1982-06-04 CHCSFGL 000000000
1982-06-01 CHCSDPL 101000000
1982-05-31 CHCSDPL 100000000
1982-05-30 CHCLADL 100000001
1982-05-29 CHCLADW 100000000

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Hector Cruz — Career Fielding Totals by Position
Position G GS PO A E DP
3B 203 180 124 329 33 20
OF 308 225 477 23 13 8

Season-by-Season Fielding

Hector Cruz — Season-by-Season Fielding
Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
1973 SLN OF 5 2 7 0 0 0
1975 SLN 3B 12 3 4 4 2 0
1975 SLN OF 6 6 16 0 1 0
1976 SLN 3B 148 148 100 270 26 19
1977 SLN 3B 2 0 0 1 1 1
1977 SLN OF 106 89 154 9 6 1
1978 CHN 3B 7 7 2 14 0 0
1978 CHN OF 14 13 30 0 0 0
1978 SFN 3B 14 6 3 13 0 0
1978 SFN OF 53 37 82 5 2 3
1979 SFN 3B 2 2 3 2 1 0
1979 SFN OF 6 2 5 0 0 0
1979 CIN OF 69 49 119 8 2 4
1980 CIN OF 29 14 42 0 2 0
1981 CHN 3B 18 14 12 25 3 0
1981 CHN OF 16 12 21 1 0 0
1982 CHN OF 4 1 1 0 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Diamond

Circle size = games played at each position.

Hector Cruz Stats, Bio & Career Records
Position Games
Third Base 203
Left Field 109
Center Field 59
Right Field 179

Award Voting History

Hector Cruz — Award Voting History
Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
1976 Rookie of the Year NL 3rd 2.0 24 2

Most Similar Players

Career comps based on counting + rate stats and primary position. Score is relative — closest peer anchors at ~98%.

Career Spans

Hector Cruz (highlighted) compared to peers across the same era.

  1. 98
    Nick Senzel
    .232 avg, 40 HR
  2. 97
    Guillermo Heredia
    .231 avg, 27 HR
  3. 94
    Larry Stahl
    .232 avg, 36 HR
  4. 92
    Bob Coluccio
    .220 avg, 26 HR
  5. 92
    Buddy Bradford
    .226 avg, 52 HR
  6. 91
    Jim Gosger
    .226 avg, 30 HR

Hector Cruz: the record in brief

The profile opens with Hector Cruz's first major league game on August 11, 1973; the last one listed came on July 15, 1982. Cruz played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1973 to 1977), the Chicago Cubs (1978 through 1982), the San Francisco Giants (1978 through 1979), and the Cincinnati Reds (1979 through 1980). Cruz, born on April 2, 1953, in Arroyo, P.R., is listed as an outfielder and threw and hit right-handed. Size on record: 5'11" and 170 pounds. The given name on file is Hector Louis Cruz.

Cruz's career batting table shows 624 games, 1,607 at bats and 361 hits, a .225 average; the totals also include 39 home runs and 200 runs batted in. Cruz's career OPS of .654 combines a .301 on-base mark with .353 slugging. Cruz's .225 average ran 13.7% below the .260 that the league posted over the same seasons. In OPS terms, Cruz's .654 stands 7.6% below the league's .708. The single-season home run high is 13, set in 1976. The highest hit total in a season was 120, in 1976.

Frequently Asked Questions about Hector Cruz

What years did Hector Cruz play?
Hector Cruz played in Major League Baseball from 1973 to 1982.
Was Hector Cruz a pitcher?
No. Hector Cruz was a position player (Outfielder).
How many home runs did Hector Cruz hit?
Hector Cruz hit 39 career home runs with 361 hits.
What teams did Hector Cruz play for?
Hector Cruz played for 4 teams: the St. Louis Cardinals (1973, 1975–1977), the Chicago Cubs (1978, 1981–1982), the San Francisco Giants (1978–1979), and the Cincinnati Reds (1979–1980).
What were Hector Cruz's career stats?
In 624 games, Hector Cruz had 361 hits, 39 home runs, 200 RBI, 186 runs, and 7 stolen bases, with a .225 batting average.
What position did Hector Cruz play?
Hector Cruz played primarily as an outfielder, the position where he appeared in the most games.
How tall was Hector Cruz and how much did he weigh?
Hector Cruz was listed at 5 feet 11 inches and 170 pounds.
How many home runs did Hector Cruz hit each season?
Hector Cruz's home runs by season: 0 in 1973, 0 in 1975, 13 in 1976, 6 in 1977, 8 in 1978, 4 in 1979, 1 in 1980, 7 in 1981, and 0 in 1982. His most in one season was 13, in 1976.
What was Hector Cruz's career batting average?
Hector Cruz batted .225 over his career, with 361 hits in 1,607 at bats.
How many RBI did Hector Cruz have?
Hector Cruz drove in 200 runs in his career.
Is Hector Cruz in the Hall of Fame?
No. Hector Cruz has not been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.