Twins scored a rare trade win over Rays in the Nelson Cruz deal in 2021

The Minnesota Twins appear to have won the deal with the Tampa Bay Rays for Nelson Cruz last season.

With the 2022 MLB trade deadline set for August 2, fans will be looking back at past deals. When it comes to last year, the Minnesota Twins were one of the bigger trades Dealing bats Nelson Cruz to the Tampa Bay Raysfighting for the AL East title.

One of the players they received in exchange for the slugger was pitcher Joe Ryan. So far in his first 20 MLB starts, he has a 3.18 ERA, among the lowest ever recorded by a Twins pitcher.

The twins win the trade with Nelson Cruz based on Joe Ryan’s performance

At the time of the trade, Ryan was the 10th best prospect in Tampa Bay. He was joined by Drew Strotman, the prospect of Ray’s #17.

Ryan made his MLB debut late in the 2021 season, starting in five games. Through that series of games, he averaged a 4.05 ERA, a .788 WHIP, and 30 strikeouts over 26.2 innings. It wasn’t until 2022 that things got better for the 26-year-old.

After his most recent start on July 23 against the Detroit Tigers, Ryan has amassed a 2.89 ERA, a 1,049 WHIP, 73 strikeouts and 23 walks over 81.0 innings in 15 starts this season.

The Rays went all in using the best designated hitter in Cruz at the time. After posting a .294 batting average and a .907 OPS with the Twins in the first half of 2021, he couldn’t find the same level of success with the Rays. In 55 games, Cruz has cut .226/.283/.442 while hitting 13 home runs and racking up 36 RBI.

Cruz signed a one-year deal with the Washington Nationals this offseason and could potentially be negotiated by this year’s close.

When it comes to who won the 2021 trade, it’s the twins.