Oneil Cruz's two home runs tonight in the Pirates' 6-5 win over the Brewers at PNC Park showed two things:
1. He's close to 100% after missing four games with a back injury
2. He's rediscovering his timing that's allowed him to thrive.
Cruz's first home traveled a whopping 442 feet.
His second, a game-tying shot in the ninth, traveled 427 feet:
Both pitches were thrown on the inner-half of the plate and the 6-foot-7 center fielder capitalized in a zone that he thrives in. The exit velocities of 117.9 and 113.4, respectively, showed that he turned on both pitches to make solid contact at the right time.
"Great to see him getting his timing back," Don Kelly said after this one. "I know we talked about that coming off the back injury, facing (Zack) Wheeler and then (Mick) Abel and those two guys. But, really, I'm more proud of him and his approach. You look at the walks, the plate discipline, the way that he's able to work the count, get on base, use his legs and we saw the power tonight. Just a real special player."
Coming into tonight, Cruz was 2 for 18 with 11 strikeouts and three multi-strikeout games since returning against the Phillies on May 16. His pitch selection -- something he's said was crucial to his early-season success -- was off. He was swinging at pitches outside the zone, which showed in his strikeouts against the Phillies.
However, when the Pirates returned home, his plate discipline improved. He drew four walks in three games against the Reds and was more selective. That allowed him to have an impact on the basepaths and settle back into a rhythm. He was just missing the power.
"I feel like I'm in a good spot right now," Cruz said through translator Stephen Morales. "Not quite 100%, but really close to it. I feel pretty good because I've been doing my work in the training room just to keep myself in a good spot. It's coming in well."
Through 52 games, Cruz is hitting .229/.358/.464 with an .822 OPS. He's added 10 home runs and 21 RBIs and is tied for the major-league lead with 18 stolen bases. He's impacted the Pirates' offense in different ways all year and followed through again tonight.
"I go out there every time to take care of business," Cruz said. "I always have a lot of confidence in myself and what I can do, and we were playing a really good team today. I'm pretty sure they were trying to do the same. But yeah, that's the key for me just to go out there with a lot of confidence to overcame anything out there."
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THE ASYLUM
Greg Macafee
5:40 am - 05.24.2025NORTH SHOREGoing Deep: Cruz 'getting his timing back'
Oneil Cruz's two home runs tonight in the Pirates' 6-5 win over the Brewers at PNC Park showed two things:
1. He's close to 100% after missing four games with a back injury
2. He's rediscovering his timing that's allowed him to thrive.
Cruz's first home traveled a whopping 442 feet.
His second, a game-tying shot in the ninth, traveled 427 feet:
Both pitches were thrown on the inner-half of the plate and the 6-foot-7 center fielder capitalized in a zone that he thrives in. The exit velocities of 117.9 and 113.4, respectively, showed that he turned on both pitches to make solid contact at the right time.
"Great to see him getting his timing back," Don Kelly said after this one. "I know we talked about that coming off the back injury, facing (Zack) Wheeler and then (Mick) Abel and those two guys. But, really, I'm more proud of him and his approach. You look at the walks, the plate discipline, the way that he's able to work the count, get on base, use his legs and we saw the power tonight. Just a real special player."
Coming into tonight, Cruz was 2 for 18 with 11 strikeouts and three multi-strikeout games since returning against the Phillies on May 16. His pitch selection -- something he's said was crucial to his early-season success -- was off. He was swinging at pitches outside the zone, which showed in his strikeouts against the Phillies.
However, when the Pirates returned home, his plate discipline improved. He drew four walks in three games against the Reds and was more selective. That allowed him to have an impact on the basepaths and settle back into a rhythm. He was just missing the power.
"I feel like I'm in a good spot right now," Cruz said through translator Stephen Morales. "Not quite 100%, but really close to it. I feel pretty good because I've been doing my work in the training room just to keep myself in a good spot. It's coming in well."
Through 52 games, Cruz is hitting .229/.358/.464 with an .822 OPS. He's added 10 home runs and 21 RBIs and is tied for the major-league lead with 18 stolen bases. He's impacted the Pirates' offense in different ways all year and followed through again tonight.
"I go out there every time to take care of business," Cruz said. "I always have a lot of confidence in myself and what I can do, and we were playing a really good team today. I'm pretty sure they were trying to do the same. But yeah, that's the key for me just to go out there with a lot of confidence to overcame anything out there."
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