Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Back in action in instructionals
Rotowire
Pirates manager Derek Shelton confirmed Monday that Cruz (ankle) has resumed participating in instructional games in the Dominican Republic this offseason, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz hasn't yet taken part in any official Dominican Winter League games and may not before the 50-game regular season ends in late December, but the fact that he's taking live at-bats again as well as playing the field suggests that he's made a full recovery from the fractured left ankle he suffered April 9. Assuming the 25-year-old avoids any setbacks in his offseason program while he continues to train in the Dominican Republic, he should report to spring training with no restrictions. Though he essentially lost a season of development at the big-league level while recovering from ankle surgery, Cruz has youth in his favor as he looks to bounce back from the major injury. His impressive bat speed and sprint speed has been matched by few players during his time in the majors and should translate to some solid power and stolen-base numbers in 2024 even while he shakes off some rust, but Cruz's lengthy absence didn't do anything to quell the concerns about his plate discipline that existed even before he fractured his ankle.
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Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Expected to be ready for spring
Rotowire
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Wednesday that he expects Cruz (ankle) to be fully healthy by the start of spring training, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz fractured his left ankle in the ninth game of the 2023 regular season and was unable to return before the end of the year after encountering multiple minor setbacks. He's in a good place now, though, and could even play some winter ball in the Dominican Republic to make up for lost time. "All of the updates we've gotten over the last couple weeks have been encouraging," Cherington said.
Manager Derek Shelton said Tuesday that Cruz (ankle) won't return this season, Alex Stumpf of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.
Cruz has run into a couple of minor setbacks in his recovery from early-April surgery to repair a fractured left fibula and will now shift his focus toward being 100 percent healthy for the beginning of the 2024 campaign. The dynamic 24-year-old shortstop went as a top-80 pick in most fantasy drafts this spring but wound up appearing in only nine games for the Pirates. He holds a career .751 OPS with 19 home runs and 13 stolen bases through 98 total major-league games.
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Will resume running this week
Rotowire
Cruz (ankle) is expected to restart his running progression this week, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz was shut down Aug. 23 due to soreness in his surgically-repaired left ankle, but he's feeling better now and still has an outside shot of returning to the Pirates' active major-league roster before the conclusion of the 2023 season. The dynamic 24-year-old shortstop has been sidelined since April 9.
Pirates' Oneil Cruz: Halts running due to soreness
Rotowire
Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cruz has shut down his running progression due to soreness in his surgically repaired left ankle, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Cruz began a running program a couple weeks ago, but his ankle hasn't responded as hoped and his rehab has "plateaued," according to Tomczyk. As for whether the talented young shortstop could still return before the end of the season, Tomczyk said cryptically that "we are running out of days." The snag that Cruz has hit in his rehab certainly isn't a positive development, and with no reason to push him to return this season, the Pirates may proceed slowly with the 24-year-old as they prepare him to be ready for spring training.
Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Thursday that Cruz (ankle) has begun a formal running program, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz has been throwing and taking light fielding practice for the last couple of weeks and has now been given clearance to ramp up the intensity of his workouts. If his surgically-repaired ankle responds well to the running progression, Cruz could feasibly head out on a minor-league rehab assignment within the next couple of weeks and return to the Pirates just before the end of August. The 24-year-old shortstop fractured his left fibula while sliding into home plate back on April 9.
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Pirates' Oneil Cruz: May play rehab games in August
Rotowire
Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Wednesday that Cruz (ankle) could begin a rehab assignment later this month, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Tomczyk has been unwilling to put an official timeline on Cruz's return while the young shortstop works back from surgery to address a fractured left ankle he sustained April 9, but the organization remains confident the 24-year-old will return to the big club at some point in 2023. According to Jerry DiPaola of TribLive.com, Tomczyk said last week that Cruz has been able to move on the field laterally to corral groundballs and was also playing catch out to 150 feet. Cruz still has a few hurdles to clear -- notably, taking live batting practice, running the bases and taking part in full fielding drills -- before beginning a rehab assignment, but he could realistically be ready to report to an affiliate at some point in the second half of August.
Cruz (fibula) played catch Thursday at a distance of 75 feet, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Cruz has also been doing some other range-of-motion exercises as he begins to ramp up his rehabilitation from early-April surgery to repair a fibula fracture. The current hope is that he could begin playing in live games again sometime in August.
