The conversation around Oneil Cruz has shifted from potential to problem-solving, and many have been just as angry as some have been, including Mark Madden.
For the Pittsburgh Pirates, figuring out how to maximize Cruz’s talent has become one of the more complicated questions on the roster, and Madden doesn't believe there’s an easy answer.
Instead, he proposed some options that could make sense on the surface, but as he also touched on, probably don't help the team in the long run.
"Put him back at shortstop, which ultimately puts uber-prospect Konnor Griffin in center field. Cruz never wanted to move from shortstop and initially resisted. Put him at third base. But a third position switch in three seasons probably wouldn’t work. Just like shortstop didn’t work and center field isn’t working. Put him at first base. His 6-foot-7 height would help. But the Pirates already have Spencer Horwitz playing that position, and that’s right fielder Ryan O’Hearn’s best position.
"Have him platoon at DH with Marcell Ozuna. But that would minimize Ozuna. Ozuna was one of the Pirates’ big offseason gets, and the Pirates are paying him $12 million. Bench him in favor of Jake Mangum. Mangum is a singles hitter but can run and play defense. He’s also known as a tough competitor, whereas Cruz often seems disengaged," he wrote.
There's a lot to dissect here, but it also goes to show where things currently stand with Cruz, who was once viewed as a player who could help the Pirates get over the hump and be a superstar for them.
I don't know what the right answer is here, and I don't think the Pirates do either, but doing anything to impact Konnor Griffin would be the worst idea here. If anything, the Pirates need to call him up and give his at-bats to the left-handed hitting Cruz.
Griffin should be the priority for everything the Pirates do from here on out. That doesn’t mean they should let Cruz ride the bench, but until he gets his stuff figured out, there isn’t a whole lot more that Pittsburgh can do.