Former White Sox second baseman Julio Cruz passed away yesterday at age 67 following a bout with cancer.  He joined the White Sox in 1983 and gave the team the spark they were looking for, helping them go on a 72-31 run to finish the season and go from 6 1/2 games back to 20 games ahead.  Cruz famously scored the winning run on a Harold Baines sacrifice fly against his former team, the Mariners, on September 17, clinching the first division title in White Sox history.  A toe injury in 1984 sapped his speed and basically ended his career, as he struggled in 1985 and 1986 and was finally released at the end of spring training in 1987.  He is survived by his wife, three sons, and their families.

Cruz is the third person associated with that 1983 Winning Ugly team to die within the last five months.  Pitcher LaMarr Hoyt also died of cancer last November and General Manager Roland Hemond, who put the team together, died in mid-December at the age of 92.