Oneil Cruz Fantasy Stats

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (ankle) remains out of the starting nine for Friday's series opener against the hosting Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Alexander Canario is starting in center field and will hit seventh against Braves left-hander Joey Wentz. Cruz injured his left ankle on Wednesday against the Cincinnati Reds and will sit out for the second straight game. With Pittsburgh having nothing to play for in the final series of the season this weekend, they won't rush the 26-year-old back into the lineup. If this is it for the Dominican in 2025, he will finish just a hair over the Mendoza Line with a .201 batting average (94-for-467) in 133 games. It's by far the lowest average in his five big-league seasons, but Cruz was still able to reach the 20-homer mark for the second straight season and also has stolen a league-high 38 bases. His swing-and-miss tendencies have to be a real concern heading into 2026, though.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (ankle) exited the team's game against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday with discomfort in his left ankle, according to Alex Stumpf of MLB.com. Cruz suffered the injury when he collided with the wall in center field in the eighth inning, and the Pirates brought in Jack Suwinski to replace him in the ninth. He ended the night 0-for-4 with three strikeouts to continue a prolonged slump. Cruz posted an unsightly .502 OPS in August and entered Wednesday's game with a .584 mark over 18 games in September. While Cruz has smacked 20 homers and totaled a career-high 38 stolen bases this season, he has registered a disappointing .201/.300/.381 line with 61 RBI and 62 runs scored in 540 plate appearances.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz is out of the starting lineup ahead of Monday's game against the Chicago Cubs. Cruz will head to the bench for the third time in the last five games. The first two times were because a left-handed starter was on the mound, but right-hander Jameson Taillon is drawing the start for the Cubbies on Monday. Cruz has been awful with the bat in the second half of the season. Luckily, his power and speed give him enough upside to warrant rostering in most fantasy formats. Jack Suwinski will take over in center field during Monday's contest.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz is on the bench to start Thursday's series finale against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers with left-hander Blake Snell on the mound. Alexander Canario will start in center field and will bat seventh. The Pirates continue to shield Cruz from lefties, as this will be the fifth straight game against them that he has taken a seat. In 118 plate appearances against southpaws in 2025, Cruz is hitting a pathetic .106 (11-for-104) with just one of his 19 home runs on the year and 43 strikeouts. The Dominican is barely hitting over .200 on the year but does have 19 homers, 54 RBI, 60 runs and 36 steals in his 416 at-bats, which continues to make him fantasy relevant in all leagues despite all the swing and miss. Cruz is hitting .123 (8-for-65) with two homers, 10 RBI, two steals and 23 K's in 19 games since Aug. 1.

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Tuesday that they reinstated outfielder Oneil Cruz (concussion) from the seven-day concussion injured list and optioned outfielder Ronny Simon to Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move. The Pirates have not released their starting lineup yet for Tuesday's contest on the road at Busch Stadium against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals, but we would expect Cruz to be back in there in center field versus right-hander Andre Pallante. The 26-year-old power/speed threat has been out of action for the last two weeks due to a concussion, but he's back now and should be rostered in all fantasy formats despite the fact that he's hitting just north of the Mendoza Line. The Dominican outfielder has hit jut .122 (5-for-41) in 11 games in August, but he's also provided fantasy managers with 18 homers and a league-leading 34 steals on the year.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (concussion) is not returning from the seven-day concussion injured list on Monday for the series opener against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium, according to interim manager Don Kelly. The team is taking it day by day with Cruz, but Kelly said that the 26-year-old came out of his rehab assignment over the weekend with Double-A Altoona feeling good. Cruz had a locker in the clubhouse in St. Louis on Monday, so he should come off the IL and play in Tuesday's game. Jack Suwinski is making another start in center field on Monday and will hit seventh against Cardinals right-hander Michael McGreevy. Cruz is barely hitting over .200 on the year, but he's fantasy relevant in all leagues because of his power speed combination -- he has 18 bombs and a league-high 34 steals in 108 games.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (concussion) started a minor-league rehab assignment at Double-A Altoona on Saturday and went 1-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI triple. General manager Ben Cherington expected Cruz to play again in Altoona on Sunday before flying to St. Louis to rejoin the Pirates for their series against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals that starts on Monday. It means that fantasy managers could have Cruz back in their starting lineups on Monday against Cardinals right-hander Michael McGreevy. When the 26-year-old returns, he should at least be a regular starter in center field for the Bucs against right-handed pitching. The Dominican is hitting just .207 (81-for-392) on the year, but he also hass 18 homers, 51 RBI, 58 runs and 34 steals. Cruz has gone just 11-for-100 (.110) with one of his 18 homers and 42 K's against southpaws.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (head) will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Altoona on Saturday, Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Cruz has been on the seven-day concussion injured list since Aug. 13. The hulking slugger got off a to a rough start in August before suffering the injury, as he went 5-for-41 (.122) with one home run, seven RBI, and 15:3 K:BB in 11 games. Cruz is an elite base stealer (34 SBs) who ranks among the best in the league in average exit velocity, hard-hit rate, and barrel percentage, but he has only managed a .207/.304/.398 line with 18 homers, 51 RBI, and 58 runs scored over 454 plate appearances.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz (concussion) has been ramping up his activities of late, according to senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk. However, Cruz still isn't ready to come off the seven-day concussion list. "He's making progress and he's improving and he's feeling a lot better," Tomczyk said. The 26-year-old went on the seven-day IL last Wednesday. While he's not ready to return when eligible, it sounds like he might not be far off from a return to the big leagues. Until Cruz comes back, Jack Suwinski should continue to see most of the starts in center field in Pittsburgh. The Dominican outfielder is batting a lowly .207 (81-for-392), but he has still managed to stay fantasy relevant because of his power/speed contributions. Cruz has clubbed 18 home runs, driven in 51, scored 58 runs and stolen a league-high 34 bases in 108 games.

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Wednesday that they placed outfielder Oneil Cruz (concussion) on the seven-day concussion injured list and recalled outfielder Ronny Simon from Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move. Cruz will miss at least the next week after colliding with teammate Jack Suwinski in the sixth inning of Tuesday's loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. Although the Dominican outfielder is batting just over the Mendoza Line on the year, he does have 18 homers, 51 RBI, 58 runs and 34 steals and should remain stashed in all fantasy formats while he recovers. In the meantime, the Pirates will shift Suwinski to center field for Wednesday's series finale in Milwaukee. Alexander Canario will be another option in center for Pittsburgh while Cruz is out. Hopefully, Cruz's break will get him back after track after slashing .188/.245/.341 over the last 30 days.