Benches clear between the Chicago White Sox and the Pittsburgh Pirates after Oneil Cruz is injured on play at plate.
Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz left the game with an apparent injury to his left leg after the collision.
In the bottom of the sixth, Cruz was trying to score from third on a Ke’Bryan Hayes grounder and was called out after running into White Sox catcher Seby Zavala.
Cruz was on the ground in obvious pain afterwards and had to be helped off the field. The play sparked a benches-clearing brawl between the teams as on-deck hitter Carlos Santana exchanged heated words with Zavala in the aftermath.
Cruz’s left foot jammed awkwardly into the ground on his slide attempt. The injury was diagnosed as a fractured ankle.
Cruz is a key player of the rebuilding Pirates. He has a very high ceiling. Cruz possesses speed, power and ability to make hard contact.
Photo courtsey of Pittsburgh Post-Gazzette
