Pittsburgh Pirates: Making a Case to Move Oneil Cruz to Right Field

Oneil Cruz is one of the Pittsburgh Pirates best prospects. But with his primary positions blocked, he should make the move to right field.

Oneil Cruz was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates at the 2017 trade deadline. He was sent to the Pittsburgh Pirates by the Los Angeles Dodgers for rental relief pitcher Tony Watson. Needless to say, the Pirates are looking like the winners of that trade.

Cruz has become one of the Pittsburgh Pirates best top prospects, and one of the best prospects in all of baseball. FanGraphs puts him as the 32nd best prospect in all of baseball, and MLB Pipeline places him as the 64th best prospect.

Cruz put himself on the radar back in 2018. During his time with Single-A West Virginia, the shortstop received 443 plate appearances. He batted .286/.343/.488 with a 134 wRC+ and showed the combination of power and speed. Cruz slammed 14 home runs, and had a .201 isolated slugging percentage while stealing 11 bags.

After that outstanding season, Cruz put himself on most top 100 lists. He then seemed to be delivering on expectations in 2019. Cruz spent most of his time at High-A and Double-A ball, and turned in an overall line of .298/.356/.475. Most of his production came at High-A where he turned in a .301/.345/.515 line, but he didn’t do bad at Double-A (.269/.346/.412).

While he did see a bit of a downturn in power, Cruz walked more than he did at High-A. In 2018 he walked at just a 7.7% clip, and in 2019 that rose to 8.2%. Plus, a .475 slugging percentage is still strong. The only thing that might have prevented Cruz from taking that next step is an injury. A fractured foot limited the 6-foot-7 prospect to just 73 games and 292 plate appearances.

Regardless, Cruz’s power should continue to rise. The 21-year-old is considered one of the best slugging prospects in baseball. In the future, his power could be a 60 grade tool, while his raw power, or how far they can hit the ball, is seen as a future 80 grade tool. Both rank in the top three of all shortstop prospects according to FanGraphs, but his raw power grade is tied for the best among all position player prospects.

Defensively, Cruz overall ranks as an average defender. MLB Pipeline gives him a 50 grade while FanrGaphs only sees him as a 40 fielder with a future of 45. However, Cruz’s best tool is his cannon of an arm. With an 80 grade arm, he is tied for the highest graded arm among all prospects in baseball. A good comparison I could make is an Aaron Judge-lite.

Cruz has spent nearly his entire career at shortstop. He has not played another position since being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Before that, he saw a good amount of time at third base, but neither could be his final position.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have so much depth at shortstop and second base. Cole Tucker will likely get regular playing time at the big league level at some point early on if there is a 2020 season. That will push 2019 rookie Kevin Newman to second base, and force the team’s primary second baseman from 2018, Adam Frazier, to a utility role.

But the Pirates will have another middle infielder on the rise in Liover Peguero who was acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for outfielder Starling Marte. Ji-Hwan Bae, another SS/2B option did very well at Greensboro last season, and is yet another young middle infielder the Pirates have in their system making their name known. Third base might also not be an option either as Ke’Bryan Hayes, the 30th best prospect in baseball per FanGraphs, will be given a long look at the hot corner this upcoming season.

So, if Cruz’s primary position is blocked and another position he has a decent amount of professional experience at is also blocked, where will this powerful infielder play? Well it would be a waste to put an 80-grade arm at first base, and that would also be forcing a lesser defender in Mason Martin to another position, so what about the outfield? Well in a couple of years, right field could be a question mark for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Cruz could be the solution to their problem.

Gregory Polanco’s contract with the Pirates is up after 2023, but that could be even earlier. He has two team options for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. However, we all know how injury prone Polanco can be. He has only ever once reached the 150 game mark in his career, that being back in 2015. Last year he played just 42 games. So, who knows what the status of Polanco’s health will be by then.

You also can’t forget about how inconsistent his bat is. Polanco has reached a .800+ OPS just once in his career. He has a career slash of .252/.320/.422, and 100 OPS+. Is a league average bat who has a long history of injuries really worth picking up a $12.5 million and/or a $13.5 million option, especially considering the strong possibility that the Pirates might have a very good team, one that could be in competition for a playoff spot?

Cruz is not slow. FanGraphs might see his future grade as a 45, but right now he sits at 60. MLB Pipeline pins his running ability at a 55. So needless to say, he should have enough speed to cover plenty of ground in right field. Shortstops are usually one of, if not the most athletic positions in baseball, so if he grades as an average defender there, he should be just fine in the outfield. But the big thing that makes a push for Cruz’s move to right field is his powerful arm. You want to put your strongest armed outfielder in right field, and with an 80-grade arm, Cruz wouldn’t be out of place in right field. His bat will also stick in right field. Most right fielders have a powerful bat, which Cruz does.