Baseball's next big thing is here
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Elly De La Cruz has arrived. And judging by his first two big league games, it's safe to say the 21-year-old phenom will be in baseball fans' lives for the foreseeable future.
Driving the news: The Cincinnati Reds' 6-foot-5, switch-hitting shortstop demolished his first career home run in Wednesday's 8-6 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers — a 458-foot bomb that nearly left Cincinnati's Great American Ball Park. At 114.8 mph, it's the hardest-batted ball by a Red since 2019.
- In his next at-bat, he laced a triple to the gap and proceeded to go home-to-third in 10.83 seconds — the fastest-tracked time in Major League Baseball this season.
- That followed his electric debut on Tuesday, when he roped a 112-mph double for his first career hit and walked twice for good measure in the Reds' comeback win over the Dodgers.
- Of note: The Reds' rookie is just the fifth-youngest player in the last 40 seasons to record three extra-base hits in his first two games, and the youngest since Manny Machado in 2012.
The backdrop: De La Cruz was unheralded when he signed for just $65,000 in 2018 out of the Dominican Republic, but a growth spurt combined with his obvious natural ability pushed him up Cincinnati's depth chart.
- He hit 28 HR and stole 47 bases in High- and Double-A last year and began this season as MLB's No. 4 prospect. He was called up on Tuesday after hitting 12 HR in 38 Triple-A games.
- Now, he's making baseball look like child's play at the highest level, and with his help the Reds have won three straight and are just five games out of first.
Wild stat: Just to give you a sense of De La Cruz's physical strength: Last month, he recorded the fastest infield throw of the season in either Triple-A or MLB (99.2 mph). The very next day, he blasted the hardest-hit ball at either level (118.8 mph double).
ICYMI … De La Cruz's teammate, Will Benson, also hit his first career HR on Wednesday — a walk-off to win the game. My man was pumped.
