Pittsburgh Pirates star Oneil Cruz is stealing the show in the early round of the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
“Unbelievable.”
“Just impressed.”
“It was sick.”
“It wasn’t even a bad pitch.”
Those are just some of the reactions from Oneil Cruz’s Pittsburgh Pirates teammates after he hit a 450-foot home run that landed more than halfway up the second deck of LoanDepot Park in Miami in the first round of the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
The Pirates star has always had the talent and potential to be one of the game's top players. Now with Cruz competing on Team Dominican Republic in the WBC, he’s getting the opportunities to showcase that on the world stage, and isn’t disappointing.
Cruz has received three at-bats in two of the DR’s Pool Play games and has recorded a hit in each of them. Each one of those hits had an exit velocity that surpassed 100 mph, and Cruz also has two home runs on his stat sheet, including the second decker moon shot.
Mar 6, 2026; Miami, FL, United States; Dominican Republic center fielder Oneil Cruz (15) celebrates his three-run home run in the eighth inning against Nicaragua with teammates at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn ImagesThe second home run Cruz hit couldn’t have been any different from his first, but was just as impressive in its own right. The outfield hit a line drive, which Don Kelly said, “line drive, missile out of there. I mean, it seemed like got out there in 2 seconds.”
The Pirates skipper has been following all of his players competing in the WBC, including Cruz, and acknowledged, “ cool to see our guys on a big stage like that having success and doing well.”
The Dominican Republic has already secured a spot in the quarterfinals, and with how well Cruz is swinging the bat right now, he could help his team go on and make a deep run into the tournament.
The Pirates are certainly hoping that this level of play can continue on into the regular season. Cruz is incredibly talented, but for a variety of reasons, some out of his control, the 27-year-old hasn’t been able to put together a complete season.
Cruz’s opportunity to showcase and get success on a stage as big and in games as meaningful as the WBC could be exactly what he needs to jump-start what could be a memorable season for the Pirates.
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