On July 28, 2006, the Brewers sent Cruz and outfielder Carlos Lee to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Laynce Nix, Kevin Mench, Francisco Cordero and minor league pitcher Julian Cordero.
Cruz would wear #17 during his time with Texas.
He hit his first home run on July 31 against Willie Eyre of the Twins.
On August 16, Cruz hit the first grand slam of his career off of Kevin Gregg of the Angels.
On September 4, 2006, against the Athletics, he hit an inside-the-park home run in which his bat broke on impact.
In spring training for the 2007 season, Cruz got off to a rough start, but finished strong by hitting three home runs in the final week, including a walk-off home run in the final game of spring training.

Cruz failed to make the major league roster prior to the 2008 season and cleared waivers after being designated for assignment because he had exhausted his minor league options.

On August 25, 2008, the Rangers purchased Cruz's contract from the Triple-A Oklahoma RedHawks.
 With the RedHawks Cruz had a .341 batting average and had 37 home runs and 100 runs batted in (RBI); for his efforts with the RedHawks, Cruz won the 2008 Pacific Coast League MVP award.

In July 2009, Cruz was selected as an All-Star as a replacement for injured Torii Hunter.
 He also participated in the 2009 Home Run Derby, finishing second to Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder.

He and teammate Ian Kinsler each hit three home runs in the 2010 AL Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays, marking only the second time in Major League history that two teammates each hit three homers in a postseason series of five games or fewer (joining Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, who did it in the 1928 World Series).
In Game 5 of the 2010 World Series vs. the San Francisco Giants, Cruz hit a home run off of Tim Lincecum in the 7th inning.
It was around this time that Cruz began to refer to his baseball bat as a "boomstick."

In 2011, Cruz and Ian Kinsler became the first two teammates in major league history to homer in each of the first three games in a season, joining Dean Palmer (1992) as the only Texas ballplayers to ever homer in the first three games of the season.
 Also, in his very next game, Cruz became the third player ever to homer in each of the first four games of the season, joining Willie Mays and Mark McGwire.

Nelson Cruz became the second hitter to hit a home run into the upper deck in right field as a right-handed batter in the history of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.
The other was hit by former Ranger Chad Curtis, during the 2000 season.
On July 22, he had 8 RBIs in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays; it was Cruz's career high in RBIs.

In 2011, Cruz batted .263 with 29 home runs.
 He led AL right fielders in range factor for the third straight year (2.29).
On October 10, 2011, Cruz hit a walk-off grand slam in Game 2 of the ALCS versus the Detroit Tigers.
He became the first player in baseball history to hit a walk-off grand slam in a postseason game.

Cruz hit a 3-run home run to seal Game 4 of the ALCS for the Rangers against the Tigers.
He became the first player to hit multiple extra-inning home runs in the same postseason series.
During the 2011 ALCS, Cruz hit 6 home runs and had 13 RBIs, both postseason series records.
 His efforts earned him the 2011 ALCS MVP award.
Cruz hit a solo home run to put the Texas Rangers up 6 to 4 against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series.
The home run allowed Cruz to tie the record for most postseason home runs in a season at 8; he shares the achievement with Carlos Beltrán and Barry Bonds.
In game 6 of the 2011 world series Cruz couldn't catch a ball hit to right by David Freese, allowing St.
Louis to tie the game when they were down to their final strike.
The Rangers lost the world series the next day.

In January 2013, Cruz was linked to buying performance-enhancing drugs from a clinic based in Miami.
 On August 5, 2013, Cruz was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal.

Cruz became a free agent following the 2013 season, turning down a $
On July 28, 2006, the Brewers sent Cruz and outfielder Carlos Lee to the Texas Rangers in exchange for Laynce Nix, Kevin Mench, Francisco Cordero and minor league pitcher Julian Cordero. Cruz would wear #17 during his time with Texas. He hit his first home run on July 31 against Willie Eyre of the Twins. On August 16, Cruz hit the first grand slam of his career off of Kevin Gregg of the Angels. On September 4, 2006, against the Athletics, he hit an inside-the-park home run in which his bat broke on impact. In spring training for the 2007 season, Cruz got off to a rough start, but finished strong by hitting three home runs in the final week, including a walk-off home run in the final game of spring training.
Cruz failed to make the major league roster prior to the 2008 season and cleared waivers after being designated for assignment because he had exhausted his minor league options.
On August 25, 2008, the Rangers purchased Cruz's contract from the Triple-A Oklahoma RedHawks.  With the RedHawks Cruz had a .341 batting average and had 37 home runs and 100 runs batted in (RBI); for his efforts with the RedHawks, Cruz won the 2008 Pacific Coast League MVP award.
In July 2009, Cruz was selected as an All-Star as a replacement for injured Torii Hunter.  He also participated in the 2009 Home Run Derby, finishing second to Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder.
He and teammate Ian Kinsler each hit three home runs in the 2010 AL Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays, marking only the second time in Major League history that two teammates each hit three homers in a postseason series of five games or fewer (joining Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, who did it in the 1928 World Series). In Game 5 of the 2010 World Series vs. the San Francisco Giants, Cruz hit a home run off of Tim Lincecum in the 7th inning. It was around this time that Cruz began to refer to his baseball bat as a "boomstick."
In 2011, Cruz and Ian Kinsler became the first two teammates in major league history to homer in each of the first three games in a season, joining Dean Palmer (1992) as the only Texas ballplayers to ever homer in the first three games of the season.  Also, in his very next game, Cruz became the third player ever to homer in each of the first four games of the season, joining Willie Mays and Mark McGwire.
Nelson Cruz became the second hitter to hit a home run into the upper deck in right field as a right-handed batter in the history of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The other was hit by former Ranger Chad Curtis, during the 2000 season. On July 22, he had 8 RBIs in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays; it was Cruz's career high in RBIs.
In 2011, Cruz batted .263 with 29 home runs.  He led AL right fielders in range factor for the third straight year (2.29). On October 10, 2011, Cruz hit a walk-off grand slam in Game 2 of the ALCS versus the Detroit Tigers. He became the first player in baseball history to hit a walk-off grand slam in a postseason game.
Cruz hit a 3-run home run to seal Game 4 of the ALCS for the Rangers against the Tigers. He became the first player to hit multiple extra-inning home runs in the same postseason series. During the 2011 ALCS, Cruz hit 6 home runs and had 13 RBIs, both postseason series records.  His efforts earned him the 2011 ALCS MVP award. Cruz hit a solo home run to put the Texas Rangers up 6 to 4 against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series. The home run allowed Cruz to tie the record for most postseason home runs in a season at 8; he shares the achievement with Carlos Beltrán and Barry Bonds. In game 6 of the 2011 world series Cruz couldn't catch a ball hit to right by David Freese, allowing St.Louis to tie the game when they were down to their final strike. The Rangers lost the world series the next day.
In January 2013, Cruz was linked to buying performance-enhancing drugs from a clinic based in Miami.  On August 5, 2013, Cruz was suspended 50 games by Major League Baseball for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal.
Cruz became a free agent following the 2013 season, turning down a $
Nelson Cruz