The Pittsburgh Pirates were active at the trade deadline as they added multiple bats in an attempt to improve the lineup. The most impactful new addition was former Miami Marlins outfielder Bryan De La Cruz.
Since joining Pittsburgh, De La Cruz has been in a slump. The heavy hitter has not played as anticipated, batting under .200 and not registering an extra-base hit for the Pirates yet. De La Cruz has always been a high strikeout, low walk batter, but his production so far has been a disappointment.
Even with the recent slump, the Pirates have no intentions of moving on from De La Cruz according to Sports Illustrated’s Schuyler Callihan.
“As poor as he’s been in the batter’s box and on the field, the Pirates are going to continue to give him every opportunity to bounce back and compete to be the everyday right fielder heading into 2025,” Callihan reports.
“De La Cruz is under club control through 2027 and has homered 50 times over the past three seasons. Despite not leaving the yard once since becoming a Pirate, he’s still tied with Oneil Cruz for the second-most long balls on the team. A cheap, young, controllable player with power is something the Pirates don’t have very much of at the big league level or in their farm system. If they gave Rowdy Tellez, an older player that only cost $3.2 million the leash they did, they’ll have the same patience with De La Cruz whether it’s the right move or not.”
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De La Cruz may not have had the best start for Pittsburgh, but when he bounces back to his typical form, he will prove how important of an addition he is. De La Cruz will be helping make an impact for the Pirates for years to come.
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