Cruz went 3-for-4 with two home runs, three RBI and a third run scored in Tuesday's 8-3 win over the Reds.
The 27-year-old center fielder crushed a Brandon Williamson cutter an estimated 444 feet to lead off the fourth inning, before adding a two-run blast in the ninth off Pierce Johnson. It was the first homers and RBI of the season for Cruz, and while he's batting .278 through five games, he's also struck out nine times in his first 19 plate appearances of 2026.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Gets start against lefty
Rotowire
Cruz will start in center field and bat eighth in Tuesday's game against the Reds.
It's the first start for Cruz against a left-handed pitcher since Aug. 2 of last season, as he was out of the lineup the final 12 times the Pirates faced a lefty last year and the first time they went up against a southpaw in 2026. The left-handed-hitting Cruz is a career .174/.249/.315 hitter against southpaws.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Taking seat Saturday
Rotowire
Cruz isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Mets.
A couple of defensive miscues from Cruz allowed the Mets to take an early 5-2 lead in the first inning of Thursday's contest, so the Pirates will keep the 27-year-old on the bench to begin Saturday's game while Jake Mangum patrols center field.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Back in lineup
Rotowire
Cruz (ankle) will start in center field and bat leadoff against Atlanta on Saturday.
Cruz missed two games after making an early exit Wednesday with ankle discomfort, but he'll return in time to make at least one more start before the end of the season. The 26-year-old hasn't exactly been ending 2025 on a positive note, however, slashing .179/.258/.286 across 62 plate appearances since the start of September.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Not in Thursday's lineup
Rotowire
Cruz (ankle) is not in the lineup for Thursday's game in Cincinnati.
Cruz departed Wednesday's game with left ankle discomfort, though he probably wasn't going to start Thursday, regardless, with southpaw Nick Lodolo on the bump for the Reds. He's considered day-to-day for the time being. Alexander Canario is in center field and batting seventh for the Pirates in Thursday's series finale.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Idle Wednesday
Rotowire
Cruz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.
Cruz has now exited the starting nine in four of the Pirates' last seven games, though three of his absences have come with left-handed pitchers on the bump for the opposition. He'll cede center field to Alexander Canario on Wednesday as the Cubs send southpaw Matthew Boyd to the bump for the series finale.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Sitting against right-hander
Rotowire
Cruz is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Cubs.
The Cubs are sending right-hander Jameson Taillon to the bump, but the left-handed-hitting Cruz will nonetheless retreat to the bench in the series opener. It's the third time over the last five contests that he's been absent from the lineup, but the first two times he sat out came against lefties. Cruz is slashing just .186/.276/.314 across 74 games since the beginning of June. Jack Suwinski will handle center field for the Pirates on Monday.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Sitting again versus lefty
Rotowire
Cruz is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Dodgers.
Southpaw Blake Snell is on the bump for the Dodgers, marking the fifth straight game the left-handed-hitting Cruz has been out of the lineup versus a lefty (when healthy). The 26-year-old is slashing a woeful .106/.212/.183 with a 36.4 percent strikeout rate against left-handed pitching this season, so he now appears to find himself in a platoon. Alexander Canario will be in center field and bat seventh for the Pirates on Thursday.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Receiving break Tuesday
Rotowire
Cruz is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Dodgers.
Cruz has gone 3-for-19 with four walks and a homer in six games since coming off the injured list last week, and he'll take a seat for Tuesday's series opener versus Los Angeles. Alexander Canario will instead start in center field and bat sixth versus Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Swipes 35th base
Rotowire
Cruz went 0-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base Thursday against the Cardinals.
Cruz started his third straight game since being activated from the injured list. He has yet to record a hit in nine at-bats, though he has reached base via walk in all three contests. Cruz also swiped his 35th bag Thursday, which is the fourth-highest mark in the league.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Will not be activated Monday
Rotowire
Pirates interim manager Don Kelly said that Cruz (concussion) will not be activated from the 7-day injured list prior to Monday's game in St. Louis, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz played rehab games with Double-A Altoona on Saturday and Sunday and came out of it without any setbacks. Kelly did not offer a target date for Cruz's activation, saying only that the team is taking it day by day. The Pirates might have just wanted to give Cruz a day to rest after he played back-to-back rehab games and then traveled to meet the team in St. Louis. Cruz has been sidelined since mid-August.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Beginning rehab assignment
Rotowire
Cruz (concussion) is slated to begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Double-A Altoona on Saturday, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz suffered a concussion in a collision with teammate Jack Suwinski on Aug. 12 versus Milwaukee.He was subsequently placed on the 7-day injured list, but Cruz is apparently no longer dealing with concussion symptoms now that he's been cleared for game action in the minors. It's not clear how long Cruz's rehab assignment will last, but enough time has passed that he's eligible to be activated by the big club at any point.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Leaves early with head injury
Rotowire
Cruz was removed from Tuesday's game against the Brewers with a head injury.
Cruz collided with Jack Suwinski while both players attempted to make a diving catch in the fourth inning, and the former needed an extra moment to stand back up. He was later lifted for a pinch hitter in the sixth. The Pirates have yet to determine the severity of Cruz's injury.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Taking seat versus lefty
Rotowire
Cruz is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Brewers.
The left-handed-hitting Cruz will take a seat for the Pirates' second straight matchup with a lefty (Jose Quintana), as he previously exited the lineup in last Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Giants while southpaw Robbie Ray started for San Francisco. Alexander Canario will cover center field in place of Cruz, who is slashing just .110/.219/.190 over 114 plate appearances versus left-handed pitching this season.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Getting breather Wednesday
Rotowire
Cruz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Giants.
The left-handed-hitting Cruz has gone 0-for-17 over the last four games and the Giants are sending southpaw Robbie Ray to the hill, so the 26-year-old will get a chance to regroup Wednesday. Alexander Canario will patrol center field and bat seventh for the Pirates in the series finale.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Smacks grand slam in defeat
Rotowire
Cruz went 2-for-6 with a double and a grand slam during Friday's 17-16 loss to the Rockies.
Cruz delivered the biggest swing in Pittsburgh's lengthy, nine-run first inning in which they sent 14 batters to the plate, smashing a 451-foot grand slam to center. The 26-year-old has showed he's quite dangerous when he can barrel up the ball, but his struggles to hit for average have been apparent as he's slashing just .220/.319/.448 on the season. He has 48 RBI on the season to go along with 18 home runs, but he's gone deep only three times since the start of July.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Hits decisive homer in win
Rotowire
Cruz went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Saturday's 2-0 win over the Diamondbacks.
Cruz's 410-foot blast in the second inning proved to be the game's only offense. In eight games since the All-Star break, the 26-year-old has gone 8-for-29 with four extra-base hits, five RBI, three runs scored and five stolen bases. For the year, he's slashing .217/.318/.423 with 17 homers, 42 RBI, 52 runs scored and a major-league leading 34 steals across 393 plate appearances.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Busy on basepaths in win
Rotowire
Cruz went 2-for-3 with a run scored, an RBI and two stolen bases in Wednesday's 6-1 win over the Tigers.
The 26-year-old is up to an MLB-leading 33 steals on the season, moving one ahead of Tampa Bay's Jose Caballero. Five of Cruz's stolen bases have come in the last nine games, a stretch in which he's batting .367 (11-for-30) with two doubles, a triple, three runs and three RBI.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Swipes 30th bag
Rotowire
Cruz went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a stolen base Friday against the White Sox.
Cruz was out of the lineup for the final game before the All-Star break with a hip flexor injury but appeared as a pinch hitter in that game and then participated in the Home Run Derby. Accordingly, it wasn't a surprise that he was able to return to the lineup Friday, and he was one of the few bright spots in the lineup as he tallied two hits, drove in the Pirates' only run and swiped his 30th base of the season. While Cruz has been relatively unproductive across the last 30 days, he currently has a six-game hitting streak during which he has gone 8-for-19 with one home run, three RBI, two runs scored and two stolen bases.
... See More... See Less
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Makes pinch-hit appearance
Rotowire
Cruz (hip) provided an infield single in a pinch-hit appearance during Sunday's 2-1 win over the Twins.
The Pirates held Cruz out of the lineup for their final game before the All-Star break after he exited late in Saturday's 12-4 loss due to a hip flexor injury, but manager Don Kelly's decision to turn to the 26-year-old in the top of the ninth inning for a pinch-hit appearance suggests that his health isn't a major concern. Cruz remains in line to participate in Monday's Home Run Derby and should return to the Pittsburgh lineup when the team returns to action Friday against the White Sox.
