Benches clear as Oneill Cruz breaks his ankle in plate collision

Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneill Cruz left the game on Sunday with a fractured left ankle after a collision at the plate with Chicago White Sox catcher Seby Zavala.

In the immediate aftermath of the play, Zavala appeared to remonstrate with Cruz for the collision, caused by the Pirates shortstop’s awkward late slide. Carlos Santana, who was on deck at the time, took exception to Zavala’s reaction and the two squared up.

Both benches cleared in a largely peacekeeping operation, and no punches were actually thrown. The two players were pulled away from each other and the game eventually resumed.

Cruz was helped off the field, unable to put any weight on his left foot, and was later revealed to have fractured his ankle on the play.

Cruz led off the inning with a walk, extending his streak to 19 consecutive games with a free pass, the third longest active streak in MLB.

A Bryan Reynolds single to right field moved the speedy Cruz from first to third, before a weak ground ball to third by Ke’Bryan Hayes saw Cruz try and score. Yoan Moncada fielded the ball and threw it to Zavala who easily applied the tag at the plate for the out, but Cruz seemed to be indecisive about whether or not to slide. His late choice meant that both he and Zavala clattered at the plate, with Cruz’s ankle bending awkwardly beneath him.

After leaving the game, Rodolfo Castro took over at shortstop for Pittsburgh.

There has been no announcement from the Pirates as to when they expect Cruz to be able to return, but it is likely to be months rather than weeks.