Reporter asks interesting question about Pirates' Cruz

Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz. Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

Reporter asks interesting question about Pirates' Oneil Cruz

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated Jun 25, 2025 4:03 PM ET

Oneil Cruz has had some issues with the Pirates recently. On Friday, Cruz misplayed a ball in center field and let it get past him. The odd thing is Cruz made no effort to chase after the ball and instead let a teammate get it.

Then on Tuesday, Cruz didn’t run hard on a ball he hit down the line that turned into a double play. He later said that he thought there were already two outs, and that’s why he didn’t hustle to first.

Oneil Cruz understood getting pulled for not hustling last night and took accountability ⬇️

"DK has all the rights to do what he did, and I'll back him up on that… it's my fault." pic.twitter.com/PVETh4fD4V
— SportsNet Pittsburgh (@SNPittsburgh) June 25, 2025

The two examples of him not hustling have come just a few days apart. It led Pittsburgh Steelers reporter Mark Kaboly to ask whether Cruz is trying to play his way out of Pittsburgh.

Is Oneil Cruz trying to play — or lack thereof — his way out of Pittsburgh?
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) June 25, 2025

Cruz still has three more years under team control and isn’t scheduled to be a free agent until 2029. If he wants out of Pittsburgh, this would be an easy way to help push his way to a new team sooner.

Cruz, 26, made his debut with the Pirates in 2021, though he only appeared in two games that season. He played in 146 games last season and batted .259 with a .773 OPS. This season he’s been a full-time player again and entered Wednesday batting .208 with a .725 OPS. He has committed seven errors in center field.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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