Oneil Cruz Just Had His Best Game with Pirates
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PITTSBURGH — Oneil Cruz is having a strong campaign so far and his most recent outing might have just been his very best with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pirates slugger had three hits in four at-bats, scored two runs and made a number of great plays in center field in the 3-1 win over the Colorado Rockies in the series opener at PNC Park on May 13.
Cruz wasn't the main story of the night, with starting pitcher Paul Skenes almost throwing a no-hitter, but Pirates manager Don Kelly was incredibly impressed with his burgeoning star's play.
"Honestly, I thought that was the best game that Oneil Cruz has played," Kelly said. "When you talk about the offensive approach, the doubles, the aggressiveness at the plate, the plays, the jumps he got in the outfield.
"I mean he sold out to try to make that play and then he goes to right-center. He made a play earlier, I think it was Moniak on a very similar ball. I thought it was the most complete game that Oneil Cruz has played."
What Cruz Did So Well vs. Rockies
Cruz got off to a great start, as he leadoff the bottom of the first inning with a double he laced 112.5 mph off the bat and 393 feet to deep center field, that he eventually scored on an RBI-single from third baseman Nick Gonzales to make it 1-0.
He then smashed his second double of the game, 111.1 mph off the bat and 385 feet to left field with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning and then just slid home ahead of the throw on an RBI-single from second baseman Brandon Lowe to double the Pirates' lead at 2-0.
Cruz added a single on a fly ball that dropped in left field, which loaded the bases and allowed left fielder Bryan Reynolds to hit an infield single and score a run later on to make it a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the seventh inning.
What Cruz did really well in this game was with his outfield defense, something he's struggled with in the past, but showed improvements in this victory.
He made two important catches in the fourth inning, one off of Rockies second baseman Edouard Julien and then the other off of center fielder Mickey Moniak, which Kelly mentioned postgame.
Cruz Almost Makes Incredible Play
Cruz did miss out on making his best defensive play of the year, as he dove for a ball hit from Moniak and just missed it, ending Skenes' no-hitter in the top of the seventh inning.
He only had a 15% catch probability on that ball and with how fast Cruz is, he gave it his all to almost make an incredible catch.
Mickey Moniak breaks up Paul Skenes' no hitter with one out in the seventh inning as Oneil Cruz couldn't get there in time pic.twitter.com/sxcSMlIGBv
— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 13, 2026
"I ran so hard that I’ll tell you right now, I would not run after my kids like that," Cruz said through interpreter Stephen Morales.
Cruz then came through with an impressive catch on a ball hit to the gap from first baseman TJ Rumfield, that kept the Rockies scoreless.
What a catch by Oneil Cruz to preserve Paul Skenes' shutout pic.twitter.com/SDAyFrZNoS
— Platinum Key (@PlatinumKey13) May 13, 2026
Skenes loved the defense he got all night, but loved the effort from Cruz throughout, especially on the catch he just missed.
"Yeah, I mean it all evens out, right?," Skenes said. "He made a couple of really good plays before that and after that. So didn't make that one. I guess I deserve it. That was cool. Obviously that's probably really not a ball that you would lay out for and seeing him lay out, that was kind of cool. He played a heck of a game."
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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.