Don Kelly has seen a key change in Pittsburgh Pirates' Oneil Cruz during Spring Training.
Oneil Cruz has the natural power to not just be one of the best hitters in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ lineup, but in all of baseball, but there are some clear areas that he still needs to improve in to get to that point.
Pittsburgh’s skipper, Don Kelly, has noticed one key change with Cruz’s approach this spring, which could help the slugger get closer to that status in 2026.
First off, Kelly noted, “You can tell that you worked his butt off in the offseason,” which is always great to see from a player heading into a pivotal season.
In terms of what Pittsburgh’s skipper has seen from Cruz from a baseball viewpoint, Kelly has noticed the left-handed hitter starting to take the ball the other way more often.
“I think the thing that has stood out to me from an offensive perspective is the way he's been able to back the ball up and go the other way,” explained Kelly.
“A lot of his hits were to left field, center field; he didn't pull too many until he hit the homer right before he left [for the World Baseball Classic.] And then I [don’t] think the first home run he hit hasn't landed yet from the WBC and then the second one landed, but it got out in like two and a half seconds.”
May 28, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn ImagesPittsburgh’s skipper makes a great point about this change in Cruz’s production.
Last season, the lefty had a pull rate of 40.7 percent, and was only hitting the ball to the right side of the field 20.9 percent of the time. As Kelly pointed out, that has shifted so far during spring training. Cruz has a pull rate of just 22.2 percent, with his opposite-field rate at 55.6 percent in 15 spring plate appearances.
It’s definitely an incredibly small sample size, but if Cruz can continue a trend similar to this one heading into the season, it will completely change the way that opposing teams plan and pitch to him.
Pulling the ball and making impact that way will always be Cruz’s bread and butter, but the ability to take the ball the other way will stop pitchers from primarily throwing him pitches specifically on the outside part of the zone.
That way, if a pitcher does make a mistake and leaves a pitch over the middle of the plate, well, I think we are all aware of what Cruz is capable of doing with that.
Making a shift as notable as this one takes a lot of work, and Kelly made sure to praise Cruz for it, too.
Pittsburgh’s manager continued, “I think just the work that he put in in the offseason, especially to work on hitting against lefties, and then it's translated into a really good approach so far.”
Cruz’s pull-rate is certainly something to watch as the Pirates' season begins, which won’t be too long with Opening Day just 10 days away.
Pirates Roundtable also offers a fan community and message board. We’d love to have you join us to talk all things Pirates. Click the “Join” button at the top of the page to join our community for free.