Perrotto: Future Suddenly Cloudy for Oneil Cruz, Pirates (+)
PITTSBURGH – The look on Oneil Cruz’s face said it all.
The Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop, with his 6-foot-7 frame squeezed onto the bed of a small flatbed cart, was crestfallen. He had a faraway look in his eyes as the cart traversed the tunnelway on the bottom floor of PNC Park on Sunday afternoon.
Cruz was being transported out of the stadium to undergo further X-rays and testing at a local hospital. However, the 24-year-old already knew he had a broken left ankle, and his 2023 season was over.
Cruz was injured when he slid into home plate awkwardly while trying to score from third base on Ke’Bryan Hayes’ infield chopper in the sixth inning of the Pirates’ 1-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.
It was immediately clear Cruz had been injured significantly and the official word came not long after the game ended.
It is a big blow for the Pirates as much of their rebuilding effort is based on the uber-talented Cruz turning into a superstar and franchise cornerstone.
It is a big blow for Cruz. Who knows how much such a serious injury could diminish his talent over the long haul.
And it is also a big blow for all of baseball.
Cruz is one of the greatest raw talents in the sport and has the type of personality to become a big star. Most of the country was just finding out about Cruz and his prodigious power, outstanding speed and cannon arm.
What makes the news even worse is that the Pirates are off to a surprising 6-3 start.
A good nine-game stretch might not get fans excited in some places. However, it does in a region that has watched its hometown team finish in last place in the National League Central each of the past four seasons and lose 101 games in 2021 and 100 games in 2022.
It is hard to imagine the Pirates making any kind of surprise run to the postseason without Cruz’s power and speed at the top of the batting order.
The injury happened so suddenly that Pirates general manager Ben Cherington and manager Derek Shelton hadn’t had time to discuss what they might do at shortstop for the long haul in the moments after Sunday’s game ended.
The most likely candidate is Rodolfo Castro. He went into spring training as the favorite to be the regular second baseman but has been sharing the job with rookie Ji Hwan Bae early in the season.
Castro, though, is considered better defensively at second base.
A middle infield of Castro and Bae does make some sense, though. Both players also can play both second base and shortstop, which gives the Pirates some options.
Journeyman Chris Owings has been splitting time at shortstop at Triple-A Indianapolis with Tucapita Marcano and prospect Nick Gonzales has made one start at the position.
Owings and Marcano, though, would be stretched to play shortstops regularly in the big leagues. Gonzales has played one game at short for Indy and is a prospect but projects as a second baseman in the big leagues.
Double-A Altoona shortstop Liover Peguero is also considered a prospect and appeared in one major-league game last season. However, the 22-year-old’s readiness for the big leagues is questionable since he is repeating the Double-A level.
Thus, the Pirates have a huge hole put into their lineup and are going to have to be resourceful in how they fill it.
And it is hard not to feel sorry for Cruz. His once-limitless future suddenly isn’t so clear.
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