Of Mexican American descent, he was born in Highland Park, Michigan in Metro Detroit and was raised in Mexicantown in Detroit. He attended Western High School in Detroit. He was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies out of Western High School in the second round (26th overall) of the MLB amateur entry draft in June, 1973, immediately signing a contract later that month. He finally made his major league debut five years later, playing only three September games with the Phillies . With Larry Bowa established as the everyday shortstop, Cruz was traded to the Royals for Doug Bird on April 3, 1979, three days before the start of a new season.\n', '

The Royals, with a glut of outfielders, a need for a starting first baseman and having decided on U.L. Washington as its regular shortstop, dealt Cruz, along with Al Cowens and right-handed pitcher Craig Eaton, to the Angels for Willie Aikens and Rance Mulliniks on December 6, 1979. A midseason swap for right-handed pitcher Randy Scarbery on June 12, 1980 sent Cruz to the White Sox, where he became the starting shortstop. Unfortunately, a back injury sidelined him for the entire 1981 season.\n', '

The White Sox\'s search for a reliable batter capable of hitting for average resulted in him being shipped along with Jim Essian and Rod Allen to the Mariners for Tom Paciorek on December 11, 1981. The 1982 campaign was Cruz\'s most productive offensively as he established career highs with 57 runs batted in (RBI), 44 runs scored, 113 hits and 16 home runs. He was supplanted as the regular shortstop by rookie Spike Owen during the following year.\n', '

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