Madden Monday: Oneil Cruz's injury is 'further proof that they should allow the runner to run over the catcher'

Oneil Cruz’s fractured ankle is a gut punch for the Pittsburgh Pirates on many levels.

Not the least of which is that the injury dampens the early momentum within the fan base and the belief that the team was on a fast ascent after nine games.

Now, though, the 6-3 record the Pirates have built seems like more of a temporary hot start than it may have been before Cruz got hurt Sunday afternoon during the club’s 1-0 win over the Chicago White Sox.

After all, Cruz is the most talented player in the Pirates lineup. He’s their leadoff hitter and starting shortstop. He has the most power, most speed and best arm on the team. However, during this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, Mark Madden of 105.9 The X and TribLIVE insists the Pirates don’t have to fall apart just because Cruz is likely to be put on the 60-day injured list and miss at least a few months.

“I don’t know if Oneil Cruz (going out) is going to make them that much worse than they would have been,” Madden said. “I think they are off to a good start, and we should leave it at that when we are talking about what their potential is.”

The Pirates were projected to win 67½ games by most bookmakers. Winning six of nine to start the year certainly got them off to a strong start when it comes to blowing by those projections. But as Madden points out, losing a large chunk of Cruz’s Year 2 development at the Major League level is the bigger story.

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Last year, Cruz hit 17 home runs with 54 RBIs in 87 games. He finished sixth in National League Rookie of the Year voting. So far this year, Cruz was hitting .250 with a .375 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of .375. He had a home run, a double, four RBIs, three stolen bases and seven runs scored through the first nine games.

Now, at 24 years old, the pause button has to be pressed on his big-league education.

“The long term is the more serious talking point,” Madden said. “You never know if a guy comes all the way back from a severe ankle injury. Usually he does. But not 100% of the time.”

As for the play at the plate itself, it resulted in a bench clearing dust-up. That seemed to be less about the collision between Cruz and White Sox catcher Seby Zavala and more about Zavala’s reaction to Cruz sliding into him in the first place.

The benches cleared in Pittsburgh following a play at the plate involving Oneil Cruz.

(via @NBCSWhiteSox)pic.twitter.com/64JCBPmq81

— ESPN (@espn) April 9, 2023

The Pirates seemed to take offense that Zavala was running his mouth at Cruz after he was injured on the play. But Madden says it’s impossible to put blame on Zavala for Cruz getting hurt.

“It was a bad slide. It was a late slide. It is further proof that they should allow the runner to run over the catcher because that can be safer,” Madden said. “That can be more concussive than, say, a ligament or a broken bone. But I just liked it the old way. At any rate, all of the blame falls on Cruz because it was a late and clumsy slide.”

Also in the podcast, Madden and I discuss the Penguins and their attempts to get back into a wild-card slot, the Masters and the upcoming NFL Draft.

Listen: Tim Benz and Mark Madden talk Pirates, Penguins and more in Madden Monday