The Pittsburgh Pirates are still looking for Oneil Cruz to put the pieces together this season.

Cruz followed a disappointing 2025 with a tumultuous start to the 2026 campaign. The outfielder went 2-for-10 with six strikeouts in Pittsburgh’s first series against the New York Mets, and two defensive miscues caused Paul Skenes to get chased out of a disastrous first inning on Opening Day.

ESPN’s Dave Schoenfield challenged Cruz to play up to his lofty potential in a column published Monday morning.

“So much of the Pirates’ hopes depend on Cruz rebounding from a rough 2025 season in which he slashed .200/.298/.378, including a .177 average in the second half,” Schoenfield wrote. “Does Cruz have it in him? He’s 27 now. The time for waiting on his potential is over. He needs to produce.”

Pirates manager Don Kelly benched Cruz on Saturday, but not because of his Opening Day mishaps. Pittsburgh faced left-handed starting pitcher David Peterson, and Cruz posted an anemic .400 against southpaws last season.

“Coming off the game Thursday, Oneil knows he has to get better, continue to work, continue to do the things that he needs to do to help this team win,” Kelly said before Sunday’s game, per Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “Today was planned and had a good conversation with him, that he knows there’s work to be done.”

Cruz responded by reaching base twice in Sunday’s 4-3 win over the Mets. He also made a stout defensive play in the 10th inning, perfectly fielding a bounce off the wall to help gun down Francisco Lindor at the plate to avoid a game-tying run.

Having posted MLB’s highest average exit velocity of the 2025 season, Cruz has the skill to break out in a big way. His development could be essential to the Pirates snapping a playoff drought.

More MLB: Watch Brandon Lowe Crush Another Home Run To Start Pirates Tenure