Former infielder Julio Cruz died Tuesday:

Cruz, a switch-hitting second baseman, played 10 seasons total in the majors. He played parts of seven seasons with the Mariners, beginning with their inaugural season in 1977. Cruz made his debut with Seattle on July 4, 1977, after being selected from the California Angels organization during the expansion draft.

MSN.com

My thought go out to his family and friends.

Cruz represented the light-hitting middle infielders. He hit .237 with a .299 slugging percentage, but did manage to draw a good number of walks. That was his strength as a hitter as his career OBP stands at .321.

He did peak early, his best season coming at seasonal age 24 in 1979. He hit .271/.363/.326 that year with 49 steals in 58 attempts. For his career, he stole 343 bases with just 78 caught stealing. He played well in his brief post-season appearance with the White Sox, going four for twelve with three walks and two stolen bases.

When I was playing Strat-o-Matic in college, early in Cruz’s career, Gallo Wine was advertised extensively.

So when Cruz came to bat, we always referred to him as Ernest and Julio Cruz.