Pittsburgh Pirates’ Onyle Cruz Faces Struggles on the Field
Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Onyle Cruz has been experiencing some rough patches lately. He found himself out of Tuesday’s game after making a fielding error and then misplaying a ball in center field last week.
Pirates manager Don Kelly decided to remove Cruz from the game following a lackluster effort during a double play situation against the Milwaukee Brewers. Cruz hit into a 6-4-3 double play, and Kelly remarked that effort is crucial: “energy and effort go down the line,” he said.
In response to the benching, Cruz expressed understanding. He said, “DK had all the rights to do what he did. I’ll back him up.” He added that he may have miscounted the outs in that moment, which contributed to his hesitation.
Following the incident, Kelly and Cruz had a conversation to clarify expectations moving forward. Cruz also struggled in the outfield against the Texas Rangers, where he misjudged a ball that rolled to the fence.
Overall, Cruz has not been hitting like the impactful player he is known to be. He recorded a .156 batting average with 31 strikeouts this month, bringing his season total to .211 with 13 home runs. Despite leading the National League with 26 stolen bases, he also tops the MLB with 101 strikeouts.
Cruz, however, disagrees, stating that his base-running challenges are separate from his batting issues. “They are really good examples,” he pointed out about his teammates who consistently give their all. “That’s the coaching point for me. I accepted the way DK came to me, explained it, and presented it to me.”
The Pirates now sit at 32-48 this season after a 9-3 loss to the Brewers, and they have a record of 20-22 under Kelly’s management after taking over from Derek Shelton.
