Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz had a big game at the dish in Friday night's walk-off win over the crosstown-rival Philadelphia Phillies, collecting three hits and three RBI in the victory. Cruz lined two run-scoring doubles and an RBI single on Friday against the Phillies, but it was a fielder's choice to send Michael A. Taylor home and tie the game at 7-7 in the ninth inning that set up Nick Gonzales' game-ending knock off Phillies closer Jose Alvarado in the following at-bat. The 25-year-old former top prospect is enjoying a productive month of July, hitting .356 (16-for-45) with three home runs, four two-baggers, 13 RBI, and one stolen base across his latest 12 contests since June 30.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz is out of the team's starting lineup on Friday for the series opener against the hosting Chicago White Sox. Cruz returned to Thursday's lineup after missing the previous two contests with hamstring soreness, but he'll sit out again to begin a new series in Chicago on Friday. It remains to be seen if the 25-year-old aggravated his hamstring or if the Pirates are just giving him extra rest before next week's All-Star break. Either way, fantasy managers need to remove him from their lineups. The 6-foot-7, 215-pounder is on pace to set career-highs across the board in 2024 after never appearing in more than 87 big-league games the last three seasons. Jared Triolo is starting at the 6 on Friday and is batting seventh against White Sox All-Star left-hander Garrett Crochet. Avoid Triolo as a sleeper in DFS.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (hamstring) is back in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale against the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers, playing shortstop and batting third against Brewers right-hander Aaron Civale. Fantasy managers will want to get Cruz back into their starting lineups. The 25-year-old was pulled early from Monday's game with hamstring soreness and missed each of the last two games as a precaution. The 6-foot-7, 215-pound Dominican shortstop has one of the fastest swings in baseball and has gone 8-for-24 (.333) with two long balls, a double, five RBI, a stolen base and four runs in seven games to begin the month of July. Through 82 games in 2024, Cruz is just three home runs shy of tying his career-high of 17 round-trippers, which he set in 2022 in 87 games.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (hamstring) is out of the starting lineup again on Wednesday against the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers. Cruz will miss his second game in a row after leaving Monday's contest early with soreness in his hamstring. It doesn't appear to be a major concern for the 25-year-old, but the Pirates are giving him a little extra rest before next week's All-Star break. Cruz should be considered day-to-day for now. Check back to see if he's available for the series finale in Milwaukee on Thursday. Jared Triolo is getting another start at the 6 and will hit ninth for the Bucs against Brewers right-hander Tobias Myers. DFS managers should be able to find a much better option at shortstop than Triolo, who is hitting just .203 (47-for-232) on the year with four homers, 24 RBI and four stolen bases in a utility role.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (hamstring) will not make the start on Tuesday against the hosting division-rival Milwaukee Brewers after he was forced to leave Monday's series finale against the New York Mets early due to hamstring tightness. For now, fantasy managers should continue to regard Cruz as day-to-day. Jared Triolo will take over at the 6 on Tuesday and will bat eighth for the Bucs against Brewers right-hander Colin Rea. Triolo is hitting .125 in eight career at-bats against Rea and will be a low-upside deep sleeper for DFS lineups on Tuesday. The 25-year-old Cruz has gotten off to a good start in July, so hopefully his hamstring issue doesn't end up sending him to the injured list heading into the All-Star break. In seven games in July so far, he's gone 8-for-24 (.333) with two homers, a double, five RBI, one steal and four runs scored in 27 trips to the plate.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (hamstring) has been on a hot stretch at the plate over the last few weeks. On Monday, Cruz went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in the win over the Mets. It's worth noting that Cruz was removed from the game after running the bases in the sixth inning. Pirates' manager Derek Shelton said Cruz was pulled out of the game as a precaution. It doesn't sound like Cruz is going to miss significant time from this issue. Fantasy managers should check back on Tuesday for another update.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz is out of the starting lineup ahead of Sunday's game against the New York Mets. This appears to be a routine rest day for Cruz against a left-handed starting pitcher. The Pirates are making sure to give Cruz plenty of rest in what is his first full big league season. Jared Triolo will cover shortstop and bat seventh versus left-hander Sean Manaea on Sunday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups ahead of first pitch.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz sent the fans home happy in Wednesday night's win over the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals, delivering a walk-off single in the 10th inning. Cruz ripped a walk-off single off Cardinals left-hander JoJo Romero to right field, giving the Pirates a 5-4 victory in extra innings. Over 312 plate appearances in 2024, the 25-year-old former top prospect is slashing a somewhat disappointing .240/.295/.427 with 12 dingers, 37 RBI, and six stolen bases. Despite the subpar batting average, Cruz still has plenty of upside as a rare power/speed threat a premium position in fantasy baseball.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz came up clutch for his team during Sunday's game against the Atlanta Braves. The 25-year-old smacked a 452-foot two-run home run off Spencer Schwellenbach in the fifth inning to give the Pirates the lead. Cruz finished the day 2-for-3 with two RBI and a walk in the victory. The potential is there, but Cruz has experienced an up-and-down campaign thus far. Despite that, fantasy managers should continue to stick with him.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz swatted his 11th homer of the year in Monday's 11-5 loss at the Cincinnati Reds. Cruz, whose homer went an estimated 458 feet, finished 2-for-5 with three RBI as he went deep for the second time in three games. Despite the recent power surge, Cruz is slashing .243/.296/.433 with 34 RBI, 34 runs scored, and six stolen bases in seven attempts. Brimming with talent, Cruz is a fantasy staple since he's capable of contributing in a variety of categories. On the flip side, fantasy managers have to endure Cruz's stretches of swinging and missing as he is on pace to strike out 189 times.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz went 1-for-3 with a walk and his 10th home run of the season, a 445-foot blast into the Allegheny River, in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Rays. Cruz was batting .295 in June until a 1-for-13 stretch over his last four games, so he's back to hitting just .250 in June. For the season, the 25-year-old owns a .243/.295/.427 slashline. His OBP is so low partly because his BB% is below-average at 6.9%, but his SLG is high because, on the back of an 18.1% Barrel%, they tend to go for extra bases when he hits it. A 32.7% K% and 68.7% Contact% are going to limit his batting average, so hopefully he can keep slugging. Fantasy managers who drafted the Dominican surely were hoping for better than a 99 wRC+ season, however.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz went 2-for-5 with a three-run homer and a stolen base in an 11-7 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Cruz added a pair of runs and three RBI to his line, giving him an excellent evening at the dish. It hasn't been great of late for the talented infielder, who had gone 15 games in a row without a homer and 14 in a row without a steal before this one. Considering those are the two categories that fantasy managers drafted him for, it's been a bit of a disaster lately. That being said, if Cruz can find his stroke he can go on a tear that few other players can, making him a must-roster player even when he isn't doing much well.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz will take a seat on the bench for the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader in Detroit against the Tigers with a left-handed pitcher on the mound. Alika Williams will start at shortstop and will bat in the nine-hole against Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal. Fantasy managers should expect to have Cruz back for the second game of the twin bill to face right-hander Keider Montero, who will be making his MLB debut. The 25-year-old Cruz has been a little better in May with a .260 average (20-for-77) with four home runs, 11 RBI and a stolen base in 20 games played. His power/speed combination makes him relevant in all fantasy formats when he's on the field. Williams has very little offensive prowess and therefore should be avoided in DFS lineups against a tough southpaw.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz is getting the day off on Sunday in the series finale against the visiting Atlanta Braves. With Cruz retreating to the bench to rest up, Alika Williams will start at shortstop and bat in the nine-hole for the Bucs against Braves left-hander Chris Sale. Especially in the nine-hole, the light-hitting Williams should be avoided in fantasy lineups in a really tough matchup. Cruz has been in a rut at the plate recently and will be given the day off against a tough left-hander. The 25-year-old has only five hits in his last 35 at-bats (.143) average with no home runs, one RBI and 17 strikeouts in nine games since May 15 to drop his season line to .147/.302/.421. Cruz is extremely strong and has one of the fastest swings in the game, but he's currently leading the league with 72 strikeouts in 205 plate appearances.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz had a big night in Tuesday's victory versus the San Francisco Giants. Cruz went 3-for-5 on the evening with two doubles, one single and a RBI. The 6'7 shortstop brought plenty of thunder with the bat as his three hits were recorded at 121.5 mph, 120.4 mph, and 116.3 mph. Cruz has been hitting the ball hard this season, but has been up and down in the production department. Overall, Cruz has hit .260 with seven homers, 19 RBI and four stolen bases. Cruz has the ability to help across the board and Tuesday's showing is a perfect example of that, he just needs to be more consistent. Regardless, he remains a starting shortstop in most formats moving forward.

Shortstop Oneil Cruz is not in the Pittsburgh Pirates lineup on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Angels. The Pirates shortstop will not be in the lineup due to Los Angeles starting left-hander Patrick Sandoval. Cruz, who bats left-handed, has struggled against left-handers this season, as he's slashing .132/.154/.211. With Cruz out of the lineup, Pittsburgh will be starting Alika Williams at shortstop, who will be batting ninth. Williams is slashing .275/.310/.400 this season. Cruz should be back in the lineup on Wednesday with a right-hander pitcher on the mound for the Angels. The shortstop will also be available off the bench as a pinch-hitter on Tuesday.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Tuesday's game against the Oakland Athletics. This appears to be a routine rest day for the left-handed slugger. Cruz is slashing .094/.121/.094 against left-handed pitchers this season, so it makes sense that they'd give him the night off against southpaw Alex Wood. It'll be Alika Williams batting ninth and playing shortstop on Tuesday.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz has been slipped down to the eight-hole for Saturday's contest against the Boston Red Sox and right-hander Kutter Crawford. The 25-year-old has hit out of the seven spot on occasion this season, but the eight-hole is the lowest spot in the order he has started at so far while he has largely served as the team's leadoff hitter. However, he's off to a sluggish start at the plate, hitting .222 with three homers, one stolen base, and a .605 OPS across his first 85 trips to the plate on the young season. Even with a massive 40% strikeout rate against only a 4.7% walk rate, fantasy managers should continue to exercise patience, as Cruz ranks in the 88th percentile in average exit velocity and the 89th percentile in hard-hit rate to this point in the season.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz is getting the day off on Tuesday against the New York Mets. In his absence, Alika Williams will get the nod at shortstop and will hit in the nine-hole against Mets veteran left-hander Jose Quintana. Cruz will get a little breather against the left-handed hurler after going hitless in his last nine at-bats with seven strikeouts in the last two contests. The 25-year-old Dominican is now hitting .232 (16-for-69) on the year with three home runs, six RBI, one steal and eight runs scored in his first 17 games of 2024. Williams, 25, lacks power and will be a low-upside deep sleeper pick for DFS lineups on Tuesday night. He's hit just .212 (25-for-118) with no homers and eight RBI in 51 MLB games to date going back to last season.

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz is getting a breather on Tuesday as the team takes on the visiting Detroit Tigers. With Cruz starting on the bench, Alika Williams will man shortstop for the Bucs and bat ninth in the order against Tigers right-hander Casey Mize, with infielder Jared Triolo in the leadoff spot. This will be the 25-year-old Cruz's second day off of the 2024 season. Cruz is a must-start fantasy asset anytime he's in the lineup, and he's off to a good start this year after missing most of last year due to an ankle injury. In his first 11 games, Cruz is batting .304 (14-for-46) with two home runs, a double, four RBI, a stolen base and seven runs scored in 49 plate appearances. Triolo will be worth a look as a low-cost DFS sleeper in the leadoff spot with Cruz out on Tuesday.