Fantasy News

• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Ankle issues not long term

  Rotowire May 8, 2024

  Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cruz's recurring left ankle issues are not believing to be a long-term concern, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Cruz played just nine games before a fractured left ankle ended his 2023 season. The ankle has since bothered him off and on during the 2024 season, including most recently during Monday's game versus the Angels. He's been able to mostly play through it, but you have to wonder whether it could be contributing to Cruz's disappointing .244/.293/.382 batting line. However, at least at this juncture, it does not appear the team is worried about Cruz's ankle problems becoming chronic.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Taking seat against southpaw

  Rotowire May 7, 2024

  Cruz is not in the lineup for Tuesday's contest versus the Angels. The left-handed hitting Cruz was in the lineup each of the previous two times the Pirates faced a southpaw, but he will begin Tuesday's game on the bench as the Angels send lefty Patrick Sandoval to the hill. Alika Williams will occupy shortstop and bat ninth.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Hits second HR in three games

  Rotowire May 5, 2024

  Cruz went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run during Sunday's 5-3 win over the Rockies. Cruz' go-ahead no-doubter to right-center in the sixth put the Pirates up for good. Cruz, who also doubled, collected his first multi-hit game in 12 games and only his third since April 6. The talented shortstop, who broke a 17-game homer-less string Friday, has gone 14-for-42 (.333) over his last 13 games with two homers, six RBI and a steal.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Ends homer drought Friday

  Rotowire May 3, 2024

  Cruz went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday's 3-2 loss to the Rockies. The 25-year-old shortstop had gone 17 straight games without a homer coming into Friday and nearly made it 18. but he got hold of a Jalen Beeks changeup in the ninth inning to make things close for the Pirates. It was Cruz's fourth long ball of the season and his first off a southpaw, and the RBI were his first since April 22. While the performance was encouraging, he still sports a disappointing .240/.287/.364 slash line through 33 contests with three steals, nine runs and 10 RBI.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Resting Tuesday

  Rotowire Apr 30, 2024

  Cruz isn't in the Pirates' lineup Tuesday against the Athletics, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports. Cruz is slashing .094/.121/.094 against left-handed pitchers this season, so he will get a day off with Alex Wood set to take the mound for Oakland. Alika Williams will take his place at shortstop while batting ninth.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Stolen base in return to lineup

  Rotowire Apr 29, 2024

  Cruz went 1-for-4 with a stolen base Sunday against the Giants. Cruz was held out of Saturday's lineup after tweaking his ankle in the series opener against the Giants. He notably moved up the order to hit third in his return Sunday and seemed to put the injury issue behind him as he swiped his third base of the season. Cruz is off to a slow start to the campaign, but he's shown some improvement of late by going 8-for-22 with a 25 percent strikeout rate across his last seven games.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Collects three hits

  Rotowire Apr 23, 2024

  Cruz went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI on Monday against the Brewers. Cruz hit eighth in the order for the third straight game against a right-handed pitcher as the Pirates seek to get him on track at the plate. He showed some reasons for optimism with his three-hit performance, highlighted by a two-RBI single in the sixth inning that gave the team some insurance runs. Most importantly, Cruz struck out only once after punching out multiple times in seven of his previous 10 games.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Inserted into lineup

  Rotowire Apr 16, 2024

  Cruz, who was originally slated for a day off, is now in the Pirates' lineup and hitting seventh versus the Mets on Tuesday. Cruz was initially not in the lineup Tuesday with southpaw Jose Quintana on the mound for the Mets, but the change in plans is a result of Ke'Bryan Hayes's late scratch for a yet-to-be-revealed reason.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Getting day off Tuesday

  Rotowire Apr 16, 2024

  Cruz is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Mets. Southpaw Jose Quintana is toeing the rubber for the Mets, so Pirates manager Derek Shelton felt this was a good time to give the left-handed hitting Cruz a breather. The fact that Cruz is 0-for-9 with seven strikeouts over the last two games was probably also a factor. Alika Williams will fill in at shortstop Tuesday.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Sitting out against right-hander

  Rotowire Apr 9, 2024

  Cruz is absent from the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Tigers, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports. It's Cruz's second day off of the season and his first versus a right-hander. He had batted leadoff in each of the previous six contest against righties. Jared Triolo will be at the top of the order Tuesday, while Alika Williams gets a start at shortstop.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Belts second homer

  Rotowire Apr 5, 2024

  Cruz went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-2 loss to the Orioles. The 25-year-old shortstop took Grayson Rodriguez deep in the fifth inning to get the Pirates on the board. Cruz has collected multiple hits in four of his first eight games in 2024, batting .344 (11-for-32) with two homers, three RBI and seven runs. He's still looking for his first stolen base however, after swiping 13 bags in his first 98 career big-league games.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: In leadoff spot Wednesday

  Rotowire Apr 3, 2024

  Cruz will start at shortstop and bat leadoff in Wednesday's game against the Nationals, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports. The Pirates faced five straight southpaws to begin the season, and the left-handed-hitting Cruz hit sixth twice, seventh twice and had one day off in those contests. With right-hander Trevor Williams taking the ball Wednesday, Cruz will be elevated to the top of the batting order.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Starts season with homer

  Rotowire Mar 29, 2024

  Cruz went 1-for-5, blasting a solo homer while striking out three times during Thursday's Opening Day victory over Miami. Cruz struggled in his first three at-bats but distributed a 1-0 offering from Sixto Sanchez the opposite way over the left-center field wall to tie the game 5-5 in the eighth inning. The dynamic shortstop played in only nine games last year prior to breaking his ankle, but his Opening Day homer followed up on a strong spring during which he hit seven long balls.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Making first spring start

  Rotowire Feb 25, 2024

  Cruz (ankle) will start at shortstop and bat leadoff in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles. Cruz didn't play Saturday in the Pirates' 5-3 loss to the Twins in the spring opener, but he'll be back in action for his first start at shortstop since April 9, when he suffered a fractured left ankle that required season-ending surgery. The 25-year-old reported to spring training at full strength and will look to get in as many game reps as possible to prepare himself for Opening Day on the heels of a lost season.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Fully recovered from injury

  Rotowire Jan 6, 2024

  Pirates manager Derek Shelton confirmed Saturday that Cruz is fully recovered from left ankle surgery, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Shelton was asked about Cruz during the team's PiratesFest fan event and said the shortstop is "healthy" and "moving around." The 25-year-old wasn't able to make it back before the end of the season after undergoing surgery in early April to repair a fractured left fibula. Cruz did play in some instructional league games in the Dominican Republic, though, and should head into spring training without any restrictions. With a full season of health, Cruz represents a tantalizing fantasy talent.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Expected to be ready for spring

  Rotowire Nov 9, 2023

  Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Wednesday that he expects Cruz (ankle) to be fully healthy by the start of spring training, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Cruz fractured his left ankle in the ninth game of the 2023 regular season and was unable to return before the end of the year after encountering multiple minor setbacks. He's in a good place now, though, and could even play some winter ball in the Dominican Republic to make up for lost time. "All of the updates we've gotten over the last couple weeks have been encouraging," Cherington said.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Ruled out for 2023 return

  Rotowire Sep 12, 2023

  Manager Derek Shelton said Tuesday that Cruz (ankle) won't return this season, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports. Cruz has run into a couple of minor setbacks in his recovery from early-April surgery to repair a fractured left fibula and will now shift his focus toward being 100 percent healthy for the beginning of the 2024 campaign. The dynamic 24-year-old shortstop went as a top-80 pick in most fantasy drafts this spring but wound up appearing in only nine games for the Pirates. He holds a career .751 OPS with 19 home runs and 13 stolen bases through 98 total major-league games.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Will resume running this week

  Rotowire Sep 5, 2023

  Cruz (ankle) is expected to restart his running progression this week, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Cruz was shut down Aug. 23 due to soreness in his surgically-repaired left ankle, but he's feeling better now and still has an outside shot of returning to the Pirates' active major-league roster before the conclusion of the 2023 season. The dynamic 24-year-old shortstop has been sidelined since April 9.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: May play rehab games in August

  Rotowire Aug 2, 2023

  Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cruz (ankle) could begin a rehab assignment later this month, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports. Tomczyk has been unwilling to put an official timeline on Cruz's return while the young shortstop works back from surgery to address a fractured left ankle he sustained April 9, but the organization remains confident the 24-year-old will return to the big club at some point in 2023. According to Jerry DiPaola of TribLive.com, Tomczyk said last week that Cruz has been able to move on the field laterally to corral groundballs and was also playing catch out to 150 feet. Cruz still has a few hurdles to clear -- notably, taking live batting practice, running the bases and taking part in full fielding drills -- before beginning a rehab assignment, but he could realistically be ready to report to an affiliate at some point in the second half of August.

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• Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Throwing from 75 feet

  Rotowire Jun 29, 2023

  Cruz (fibula) played catch Thursday at a distance of 75 feet, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. Cruz has also been doing some other range-of-motion exercises as he begins to ramp up his rehabilitation from early-April surgery to repair a fibula fracture. The current hope is that he could begin playing in live games again sometime in August.

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