It sounds like it’s finally almost Oneil Cruz time. Fan account Pirates of the Allegheny stated Monday that a source involved with the team said a weekend callup was planned, and The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal dropped a similar hint in his notes column on the same day. With super-two arbitration now out of the picture, there’s no longer much reason financially for the Pirates to hold him back, and Cruz has been plenty productive of late, hitting .309/.400/.617 with seven homers in 21 games since May 15.
Most likely, Cruz will open up at shortstop for the Pirates.