Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz fractured his left ankle in a collision at home plate on Sunday, prompting the benches to clear as the highly regarded prospect laid in agony near home plate.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton revealed news of the fracture after the 1-0 win over the Chicago White Sox but didn’t provide an estimated timeline per how long Cruz will be sidelined.
Cruz was at third base in the sixth inning when Ke’Bryan Hayes hit a slow roller toward third. Chicago’s Yoan Moncada threw home and Cruz charged down the lane and made a late awkward slide and collided with White Sox catcher Seby Zavala.
Cruz was out on the play and remained on the ground during the ensuing ruckus. Zavala appeared to yell something at Cruz after the collision and a few Pirates, namely Carlos Santana, took issue with the catcher.
Nobody was ejected.
“We’ve got to take time to try and be in (Cruz’s) shoes and you know, just hope he heals up and gets himself back,” Pittsburgh outfielder Andrew McCutchen said afterward. “But it’s a tough blow for sure for the team.”
The loss of Cruz is a big-time hit for the Pirates, who are off a surprising 6-3 start.
Cruz, 24, had 17 homers and 54 RBIs while batting .233 in 87 games last season. He was expected to become more of a force in his first full big league season.
So far, Cruz is 8-for-32 (.250) with one homer and four RBIs in nine games this season.
Rodolfo Castro finished the game at shortstop. He is primarily a second baseman.
–Field Level Media