A deal's a deal: Cruz triples, then gives bat to young fan

May 25th, 2025

PITTSBURGH -- Ever since he broke into the Majors in 2022, has shown that he has thunder in his bat. On Saturday, he showed that power, and then decided to share it.

Cruz’s RBI triple in the seventh inning Saturday ended up being the deciding tally in the Pirates’ 2-1 win over the Brewers at PNC Park. Normally, a player would want to hang onto a bat that has shown it has some hits in it, but Cruz had to honor a deal he made with a 10-year-old in the stands.

“We made a deal that if he got a hit, he would give me his bat, and he got a triple, and he came out with it next inning,” John Block said to SportsNet Pittsburgh reporter Hannah Mears.

"I took it like a challenge from the kid, and I couldn't let him down,” Cruz said via interpreter and coach Stephen Morales.

Block confirmed that the bat was “very heavy,” and even though he plays baseball himself, Cruz’s lumber is going to be for display purposes only. While Block’s excitement was obvious, his father, also named John, was tearing up on the broadcast.

“I’m just so proud of him,” the elder Block said. “He works so hard in every game and he wants to be a stud someday like these guys, so I love it. I absolutely love this.”

That news really registered with Cruz.

“I did the same thing as a kid,” Cruz said. “I was always looking for my favorite players that I wanted to be like. It makes me proud and makes me happy that someone wants to be like me."

Cruz has shown that his bat has pop in it, homering twice Friday and following it with a multihit performance Saturday. So that means that Block is going to be able to hit like the Pirates’ star because he has the same lumber, right?

"He'd have to work hard to do that,” Cruz joked.