Not only did Oneil Cruz arrive at spring training seemingly in \u2014 cue the spring training cliche \u2014 the best shape of his life, but he\u2019s also sporting a new look in hope of rebounding from the worst year of his career.<\/p>\n
The Pirates\u2019 outfielder appears noticeably more muscular<\/a> ahead of his sixth MLB season, while also swapping his signature dreadlocks for a shorter hairstyle.<\/p>\n Cruz went 1-for-3 with a single and a stolen base during a 6-2 loss to the Yankees<\/a> on Monday.<\/p>\n Oneil Cruz during Monday\u2019s game. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cThe season that I had last year, it was not my best season,\u201d Cruz said during the offseason, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette<\/a>. \u201cI went home and went right to work on the stuff that I was having trouble with last year and work on my body again. No time to relax. Just focus on what I need to do to get better.\u201d<\/p>\n Cruz, 27, is preparing for a critical year after he performed like one of the worst hitters in the sport in 2025.<\/p>\n A career .233 hitter with a .734 OPS, he instead hit .200 with a .676 OPS across 135 games while striking out 174 times in 544 plate appearances (32 percent).<\/p>\n The .200 average ranked the lowest<\/a> among 145 qualified hitters.<\/p>\n His 38 steals, though, matched Juan Soto for the most in the National League.<\/p>\n Part of Cruz\u2019s offseason makeover included getting rid of his dreadlocks, which he reportedly featured going back to his days in the minors, but had been planning to move on from for months.<\/p>\n Cruz during September 2025 with his dreadlocks. Getty Images<\/p>\n He FaceTimed with ex-Pirate and current free agent Andrew McCutchen to show him the shocking change.<\/p>\n \u201cHe said you look a lot better,\u201d Cruz said via a translator, per the Post-Gazette. \u201cAnd more handsome.\u201d<\/p>\n That new look comes with seemingly added muscle, but the physical changes may not matter if Cruz can\u2019t figure out how to be at least competitive against southpaws.<\/p>\n Cruz slashed .102\/.224\/.176 against lefties in 2025, striking out 44 times spanning 125 plate appearances (35.2 percent).<\/p>\n For his career, he\u2019s just a .172 hitter against southpaws with a .560 OPS.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n While there are plenty of players who have notable splits, being that unproductive can lead to young players landing in a platoon role that ultimately caps financial earning capabilities.<\/p>\n Monday\u2019s game offered reason for optimism with Cruz singling in the first inning against Yankees lefty Ryan Yarbrough, although he struck out in his final two at-bats.<\/p>\n \u201cLast year wasn\u2019t a good year against lefties like the prior year,\u201d Cruz said in January, per the Post-Gazette. \u201cThat\u2019s what I was doing in the Dominican this year, facing a lot of live pitching against lefties just to get better at it. And go back to hitting lefties like I used to.\u201d<\/p>\n Cruz steals a base during Monday\u2019s game. AP<\/p>\n Cruz also will need to improve his defense after a career-worst minus-14 defensive runs saved metric<\/a> in 2025, a deep dip after just being minus-3 in 2024.<\/p>\n A rebound season would certainly help a Pirates team looking to finally contend in the Paul Skenes era and make some noise in the NL Central.<\/p>\n