Oneil Cruz Fantasy Stats

Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said that the "rough timetable" for outfielder Oneil Cruz's (hand) return is four to six weeks, per Danny Demilio of Pittsburgh Baseball Now. Cruz was placed on the 10-day injured list earlier this week due to non-displaced fourth and fifth metacarpal fractures in his left hand. It's an unfortunate setback for the 27-year-old, who was in the midst of a stellar season. Across 283 plate appearances before the injury, Cruz hit .264/.350/.472 with 14 home runs, 44 RBI, 45 runs scored, and 21 stolen bases. Cruz's 34.6% strikeout rate is less than ideal, but his elite barrel (16.4%) and hard-hit (59.2%) rates allow him to be productive even through the swing-and-miss. Even with Cruz likely to be sidelined until mid-to-late July, fantasy managers should find a way to stash him in an IL or bench spot. Pirates outfielder Jake Mangum has taken over as the team's starting center fielder in Cruz's absence.

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Wednesday that they placed outfielder Oneil Cruz (hand) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to June 8) with left-hand fourth and fifth metacarpal non-displaced fractures and recalled outfielder Billy Cook from Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move. Cruz initially injured his left hand while sliding in Saturday's game against the Atlanta Braves, and he's expected to be out for a month, which means he probably won't return until after the All-Star break in mid-July. Jake Mangum made another start in center field for the Pirates on Wednesday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and he figures to become a lineup regular going forward, at least against right-handed pitchers. The 27-year-old Cruz should not be dropped in any traditional fantasy formats while he's sidelined. He has one of the quickest bats in baseball and makes some of the loudest contact when he connects, not to mention his high-end speed on the basepaths. Through 64 games in 2026 in his sixth year in the big leagues, Cruz is slashing .264/.350/.472 with an .822 OPS, 14 homers, 44 RBI, 21 stolen bases, 45 runs scored, and a league-leading 98 strikeouts in 283 plate appearances.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (hand) was initially slated to return to the starting lineup on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Dodgers at PNC Park, but he was scratched from the lineup and missed his second straight game with a cut on his hand that he suffered on Saturday, according to the team. Jake Mangum got the start in center field on Tuesday and was hitting seventh in the batting order against Dodgers left-hander Eric Lauer. The 27-year-old Cruz's injury isn't considered serious, so he could be back in action as soon as Wednesday against L.A. Cruz hits the ball as hard as anyone in the big leagues when he makes contact, making him a must-start in all fantasy formats when he's active. The Dominican outfielder currently leads the league with 98 strikeouts in 283 plate appearances this year, but he's a multi-category contributor and is slashing .264/.350/.472 with an .822 OPS, 14 home runs, 44 RBI, 21 stolen bases, and 45 runs scored in 64 games. Cruz is well on pace to set a new career high in home runs in his sixth year in the majors.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (hand) cut his hand while sliding into home plate on Saturday against the Atlanta Braves and was out of the starting lineup for the series finale on Sunday as a result, according to Jeff Hathhorn of 93.7 The Fan. Cruz is considered day-to-day and is unlikely to land on the 10-day injured list. The Pirates had a scheduled day off on Monday, so hopefully, he'll be feeling good enough to return to the starting nine for Tuesday's series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers. When healthy, the Dominican outfielder is a must-start in all fantasy baseball formats because of his ability to contribute across all categories. Cruz currently ranks in the 100th percentile in hard-hit rate, the 79th percentile in xwOBA, and the 100th percentile in maximum exit velocity. He's currently slashing .264/.350/.472 with an .822 OPS, 14 home runs, 44 RBI, 21 stolen bases, and 45 runs scored in 64 games across 283 plate appearances. Cruz leads the league with 98 strikeouts, but he scorches the ball more often than not when he makes contact.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (illness) is back in the starting lineup ahead of Tuesday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Cruz was scratched ahead of Monday's contest due to an illness. He needed a rest day anyway after going 0-for-10 at the plate with five strikeouts over his last two games. Outside of that, it has been a productive beginning of the season for Cruz, who is slashing .259/.320/.518 with eight home runs, 24 RBI, and 10 steals across 27 games. He'll bat in the leadoff spot and cover center field against right-hander Kyle Leahy on Tuesday.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (illness) was scratched from the team's starting lineup on Monday against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park, according to the team. With Cruz being under the weather, Jake Mangum made the start in center field for the Bucs and was hitting eighth in the batting order against Cardinals right-hander Dustin May. First baseman Spencer Horwitz was also moved up to the leadoff spot. Fantasy managers should consider Cruz to be day-to-day. Check back on Tuesday to see if he's feeling good enough to return to action for Game 2 of the series in the Steel City. The 27-year-old Dominican has already had his fair share of mishaps on defense in center field as he continues to transition from shortstop to center field in the big leagues, but fantasy managers can't complain about his bat through his first 112 at-bats of the year. Cruz came into Monday's action slashing .259/.320/.518 with an .838 OPS, eight long balls, 24 RBI, 10 stolen bases, and 19 runs scored. He led the league with 38 steals in 2025 and is an elite power speed option in fantasy when he's healthy.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz continued his hot start to the 2026 season by going 2-for-5 with a double, two stolen bases, an RBI, a run scored, and a strikeout in the team's 8-7 extra-inning loss at PNC Park to the Washington Nationals on Thursday. Cruz came into Thursday's game slashing .310/.380/.563 with a .943 OPS, five home runs, 16 RBI, seven stolen bases, 14 runs scored, seven walks, and 25 strikeouts in 18 games played. It's very nice to see for the Pirates and fantasy managers who have been waiting for Cruz's breakout season. He did have 20 home runs, 61 RBI, and a league-high 38 stolen bases in 135 games in 2025, but he also hit just .200 (94-for-471) with 174 strikeouts in 544 plate appearances. The 27-year-old Dominican has some of the best bat speed and exit velocities in the big leagues, so if he can cut down on the whiffs, his power/speed upside makes him extremely dynamic for fantasy baseball purposes.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz continued his hot start to the season in his team's 8-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday, going two-for-five with a home run, three RBI, and an additional run scored. Perhaps most importantly for Cruz's fantasy outlook, his home run came against Reds left-handed starter Andrew Abbott. The lefty-swinging Cruz has traditionally struggled against same-handed pitching throughout his career and has often been platooned, but he got the start against Abbott on Wednesday and delivered. Through his first 24 plate appearances of 2026, Cruz is hitting .304 with three home runs, six RBI, and seven runs scored. The 27-year-old has also struck out 10 times, so his batting average is likely to regress closer to his career mark of .233 over a larger sample. Still, if Cruz can do enough damage against lefties to earn everyday playing time, he could post monster power and speed totals for fantasy managers in 2026.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz is not in the starting lineup for his team's matchup with the New York Mets and left-handed starting pitcher David Peterson on Saturday. Switch-hitter Jake Mangum will take Cruz's spot in center field and bat ninth. Cruz's 2026 season got off to a rough start in Pittsburgh's opener against the Mets on Thursday, as he struck out three times in five plate appearances and misplayed a ball in center field that led to multiple runs for New York. The 27-year-old owns a slash line of .172/.247/.313 with a 38.4% strikeout rate in 401 career plate appearances against left-handed pitching. It appears that Pittsburgh is planning to deploy Cruz in a true big-side platoon role in center field, at least to begin 2026. Cruz's power/speed profile makes him a high-upside fantasy outfielder, but his ability to rack up counting stats is limited by his lack of everyday playing time.

Pittsburgh Pirates hitting coach Matt Hague said that outfielder Oneil Cruz hired a left-handed batting practice coach on the second day of the offseason and worked on hitting lefties all offseason. Cruz reached the 20-homer mark for the second straight year in 2025 and also had a league-high 38 stolen bases, but he hit a career-low .200 (94-for-471) with 174 strikeouts in 544 plate appearances. Against southpaws, he went just 11-for-108 (.102) with one of his 20 home runs and 44 K's in 125 plate appearances. Cruz has elite bat speed and exit velocities when he contacts a baseball, but issues making contact have lowered his fantasy value going into his sixth year in the big leagues. The 27-year-old was the first player in MLB history to hit 20-plus homers and steal 30-plus bases while batting under .230. If Cruz can improve against lefties and find a way to make more consistent contact, he should easily be a top-20 fantasy outfielder. Right now, RotoBaller has him ranked at No. 29.