Jose Cruz Jr., former Major League player and three-time All-American at Rice, made his debut as a baseball studio analyst this past month. Cruz has joined the crew of ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" and also works on "Beisbol Esta Noche" on ESPN Deportes.
In an interview with ESPN, Cruz said, "I’m excited to join ESPN’s impressive roster of MLB commentators. I accumulated a wealth of knowledge and perspective during my playing career and I’m eager to share those insights on Baseball Tonight.”
Cruz attended Rice from 1992-1995 before being chosen as the 3rd overall pick of the 1995 Amateur Draft by the Seattle Mariners. He made his major league debut with the Mariners in 1997 and played for eight different teams during his professional playing career. In 2003, he was the winner of the Rawlings Golden Glove Award as a member of the San Francisco Giants. He retired after playing with the Houston Astros in 2008 and went on to work as an MLB analyst with MLB.com.