Pirates’ Oneil Cruz Shoulders Responsibility After Benching

Pittsburgh Pirates centerfielder Oneil Cruz was pulled from Tuesday’s 9-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers after a lack of hustle on a key play in the seventh inning.

Pirates manager Don Kelly benched Cruz before the bottom of the eighth, citing poor effort on a ground ball with one out and a runner on first. Cruz appeared to ease up running to first, and the Brewers turned a double play.

Though Cruz remained in defensively for the bottom of the seventh, Alexander Canario took over in center field in the eighth. The Pirates’ manager said it was about maintaining team standards.

“I think we were pretty clear the other day, and he knows the expectation going forward,” Kelly said, per Adam Herera of MLB.com. “Right there, I think we fell a little short.”

Cruz accepted responsibility after the game, noting he thought there were two outs.

 “DK had all the rights to do what he did, and I’ll back him up on that,” Cruz said postgame through an interpreter.

The benching followed another incident Friday when Cruz misplayed a ball in center field. Kelly addressed that play with Cruz privately and allowed him to remain in the game.

At the plate, Cruz’s production has dipped from a .902 OPS in April to .725. He is batting .208 with 13 home runs and 31 RBI in 70 games for the Pirates this season. He said his offensive struggles did not affect his effort on the double play.

“It was just a mistake,” he said.

As for Wednesday’s series finale, Kelly said a decision on Cruz’s status would come after staff discussions.

“We’re going to sit down and talk, and we’ll figure that out,” he said.

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