Position: RHP
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 170 lbs
Bats/Throws: R/R
Born: 01/06/2003
Country: Dominican Republic
How Acquired: International Free Agent, 2019
Bonus: $850,000
40-man Roster: No
Rule 5 Eligible: 2023
Minor League Free Agency: 2027
Options Left: 3
Overview
Cruz got the largest bonus of the Pirates’ July 2 signings in 2019, although Po-Yu Chen later got a larger one. Cruz throws four- and two-seam fastballs and has reached 94 mph. He also throws a slider, curve and change. So far, though, he hasn’t developed at all.
2020-23
After the 2020 season was wiped out, the Pirates brought Cruz to the FCL for his debut. It didn’t go well, as Cruz struggled to throw strikes, walking more than he struck out. Other than control problems, he held his own in July and August, but he got bombed in two September starts. Back in the FCL in 2022, Cruz had almost exactly the same season as 2021. Literally. Exact same IP, WHIP and strikeouts. Three fewer walks but three more hits.
In a third try at the FCL in 2023, Cruz went downhill. He had an ERA of 11.91 and walked nearly twice as many as he struck out. He managed only 11.1 IP in ten games because he simply couldn’t get through innings without a great deal of difficulty.
Stats
Transactions
July 2, 2019: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an international free agent.