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What is the best offensive lineup the Pirates can make?
By Baron Dionis
Shortstop, Oneil Cruz
Oneil Cruz has been a very exciting hitter for the Pirates all season. He began the season at leadoff, but due to Andrew McCutchen finding success in that spot and Ke'Bryan Hayes getting injured, Cruz has found success when hitting in the three spot.
This season, Cruz has a batting average of .251 with seven home runs and 18 runs batted in. He also has an OPS of .723, which includes an on-base percentage of .298 and a slugging percentage of .425. Due to his injury last season, stealing bases has been a concern for re-injury, but he has stolen four bases this season.
Cruz also has an above average wRC+ of 101 which is 1 point above league average. He is hitting for a higher batting average than he has in any other season with the Pirates, but he has continued to strike out a lot. His strikeout percentage is at 33.1% which is lower than 2022, but is still very high.
Cruz has always been known for hitting the ball hard, but the stat cast has him close to the top of the league in various categories. He has an average exit velocity of 94.8 miles per hour, which is in the 99th percentile. His barrel percentage is also high at 14.8%, which is in the 91st percentile, and his hard-hit percentage is also high at 54.6%, which is in the 96th percentile. A new stat has been documented called bat speed and Cruz is ranked second among all qualified hitters. His bat speed is in the 100th percentile at 77.9 miles per hour. The only player he is behind is Giancarlo Stanton who has an average bat speed of 80.6 miles per hour.
Oneil Cruz is a very exciting player to watch and if he cuts down the strikeouts, then he could be one of the top hitters in the MLB. He will also remain at shortstop.