This Pittsburgh Pirates player has become a major problem.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have the worst offense in baseball this year, and much of that is due to what has been a miserable season for outfielder Oneil Cruz.

Cruz was viewed as a potential breakout candidate heading into 2025. Instead, he is slashing just .204/.306/.383 with 19 home runs and 56 RBI over 513 plate appearances. Yes, he leads the National League with 38 stolen bases, but it's hard to get too excited about that when you see his .689 OPS, not to mention his defensive deficiencies.

The 6-foot-7, 240-pound Cruz initially came up as a shortstop. However, because he simply could not field his position, the Pirates opted to move Cruz to center field. That hasn't worked, either. Cruz owns a horrendous minus-14 DRS this season, and his error on Sunday cost Pittsburgh a win against the Washington Nationals.

So, not only is Cruz — who was billed as a five-tool player in the minor leagues — laboring at the plate, but he is costing the Pirates dearly in the outfield, as well.

Five seasons into his major-league career, it is becoming increasingly obvious that Cruz is not panning out. At least not in Pittsburgh. It seems hard to imagine the 27-year-old suddenly turning it around and living up to his original expectations with the Pirates.

It might finally be time for Pittsburgh to pull the plug on the Cruz experiment and trade him over the winter. There is a chance that the Bucs may be able to land a feasible return for him given his "potential," and to be perfectly honest, we can't even rule out the possibility of Cruz actually developing into a capable player elsewhere.

I mean, look what Ke'Bryan Hayes has been doing since the Pirates traded him to the Cincinnati Reds at the deadline. Maybe Cruz can have a similar uptick with a different franchise.

At this point, the Cruz era in Steel City should be reaching its conclusion. There are only a couple of weeks left during the 2025 regular season, and they could very well represent Cruz's final days in Pittsburgh. There would surely be some trade interest in Cruz this winter, so don't be shocked if the Pirates make a move.