Luis Iván Cruz is a retired Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 first baseman

First baseman

First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...

. He played during four seasons at the major league level for the New York Yankees

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...

, Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...

, and St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...

. He was drafted by the Detroit Tigers

Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...

 in the 28th round of the 1989 amateur draft

1989 Major League Baseball Draft

-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1989 Major League Baseball draft.-Supplemental first round selections:-External links:*...

. Cruz played his first professional season with their Class-A (Short Season) Niagara Falls Rapids

Niagara Falls Rapids

The Niagara Falls Rapids were a Class-A minor league baseball team located in Niagara Falls, New York. They were formerly known as the Niagara Falls Sox, from 1982 to 1985, and were affiliated with the Chicago White Sox. The team played in the New York - Penn League, and were affiliated with the...

 in , and his last with the Chunichi Dragons

Chunichi Dragons

The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chubu region of Japan. The team is in the Central League. They won the 2007 Japan Series and 2007 Asia Series.-History:...

 of Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

's Central League

Central League

The or is one the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country,The Central League...

 in . He played his last affiliated season with St. Louis and their Triple-A Memphis Redbirds

Memphis Redbirds

The Memphis Redbirds are the Triple-A minor league baseball affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They play their home games at AutoZone Park in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. The stadium's capacity is 14,320. They entered the Pacific Coast League as an expansion team in 1998, and were owned as a...

 in , in which he won the Joe Bauman Home Run Award

Joe Bauman Home Run Award

The Joe Bauman Home Run Award is the award given to the minor league baseball player who hit the most regular season home runs that year. The award, first given in 2002, is named after Joe Bauman, who set a then-professional record with 72 home runs in 1954, while playing for the Roswell Rockets of...

. In 2008, he entered his first of two seasons as manager of the U.S. Military All-Stars/Heroes of the Diamond and the Latin Stars "Red, White and Blue Tour" posting consecutive winning seasons. Under Cruz’s tutelage, over 25 players were offered scholarships or professional contracts. In 2010, he made his affiliated debut as the manager of the Peoria Padres, the Rookie Short Season A-ball affiliate of the San Diego Padres.