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Baseball
The Oneil Cruz Trade Rumors Have Lost the Plot
North Shore Nine: A Pittsburgh Pirates Podcast›
Jul 22, 202618:17
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Bob Nightengale says the Pirates could be willing to listen on Oneil Cruz as they search for bullpen and rotation help. Alex Stumpf explains why trading Cruz now would solve nothing, why his ceiling still matters, and why Pittsburgh should use prospect capital to acquire multiple relievers instead.
Before landing on the injured list, Cruz had 14 home runs, 44 RBI, 21 stolen bases and a 123 wRC+ through 64 games. The offense may have survived without him, but that does not mean the Pirates would be better without him.
Read Alex Stumpf’s work at Book Rule Bucs:
https://bookrulebucs.substack.com/
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"The Oneil Cruz Trade Rumors Have Lost the Plot" is an episode of North Shore Nine: A Pittsburgh Pirates Podcast. Runtime 18 min. Published July 22, 2026. Hit play above to stream it here, or open the free Spot Sports app for background play and offline downloads.
