Pirates' Andrew McCutchen Denies Off Day Rumors
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PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates legend Andrew McCutchen recently dispelled rumors about his absence in the most recent game.
The Pirates faced the Cleveland Guardians for their second game of the series at PNC Park on April 19, with McCutchen not in the starting lineup. He did start the previous three games, including the past two at designated hitter.
Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweeted out that McCutchen got a day off, following the Pirates release of the starting lineup.
McCutchen, in a now deleted tweet, which took place at 3:41 p.m., 24 minutes before first pitch, denied that and said "'Day off?' 🤨".
Cruz gets a day at DH. Triolo gets the start at short. Cutch gets a day off. https://t.co/t0XFhacvdE
— Noah Hiles (@_NoahHiles) April 19, 2025
The Pirates struggled from the plate in their 3-0 loss to the Guardians, with just six hits overall and going 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
Oneil Cruz took over at designated hitter, while still leading off, while Tommy Pham came in at left field and Jack Suwinski moved to center field in Cruz's place.
Pirates manager Derek Shelton said post game that McCutchen was available for the game, but that they put Cruz at designated hitter to give him a day off.
Cutch did not have an off day. Shelton said Cruz DH’d to give him that rest. Still tho… I’ll take Cutch in RF every time to have him in the lineup than Suwinski. I know Shelton is frustrated, but this team is making developmental moves while the fans want to legit compete pic.twitter.com/Xwfsb05gcn
— Nicholas Callas (@CALLAS_33) April 19, 2025
Shelton also put Alexander Canario in to pinch-hit for Suwinski in the bottom of the seventh inning with Jared Triolo on second base with one out. Canario would strikeout and the issues continued on for the Pirates from the plate.
This serves as McCutchen's 12th season with the Pirates. He has played in 16 games so far, hitting .234/.345/.340 for an OPS of .686 with 11 hits, one home run, two doubles, five RBIs and eight walks to 10 strikeouts.
McCutchen served mostly as a designated hitter last season, playing in 120 games with 104 hits, 18 doubles, 20 home runs and 50 RBIs while slashing .232/.328/.411 at 38-years-old for the Pirates.
The Pirates selected McCutchen with the 11th overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft out of Fort Meade High School in Fort Meade, Fla. They convinced him to forgo his commitment to Florida, offering him a $1.9 million signing bonus.
McCutchen made his MLB debut in June 2009 and had a great rookie campaign, slashing .286/.365/.471, while adding 124 hits, 26 doubles, nine triples, 12 home runs, 54 RBIs, 22 stolen bases and 54 walks to 83 strikeouts. He finished fourth in National League Rookie of the Year voting.
His continued to improve over the coming years, with five consecutive All-Star appearances for the NL from 2011-15, four consecutive Silver Slugger Awards from 2012-15 and a Gold Glove Award in 2012.
McCutchen won the NL MVP in 2013, as he slashed .317/.404/.508 with 185 hits, 38 doubles, five triples, 21 home runs 84 RBIs, 27 steals and 78 walks to 101 strikeouts. He also helped the Pirates end a streak of 20-consecutive losing seasons and make the playoffs that year for the first time since 1992.
The Pirates traded McCutchen after the 2017 season to the San Francisco Giants. He spent part of the 2018 season there before they traded him to the New York Yankees.
He signed a three-year, $50 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies that offseason, keeping him there through the 2021 season. He also played the 2022 season for the Milwaukee Brewers.
McCutchen re-signed with the Pirates on a one-year, $5 million contract before the 2023 season. He would do the same prior to the 2024 season and again for this season, marking his 11th with the franchise.
He has played in 1,594 games, made 1,678 hits, 331 doubles, 236 home runs, 45 triples, 823 RBI, 186 stolen bases and 823 walks, while slashing .284/.375/.474 with Pittsburgh.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.