The Cincinnati Reds are riding a nine-game winning streak that propelled them into first place in the National League Central. The arrival of rookie sensation Elly De La Cruz has been a major factor behind that recent surge.
He simply changes the game with his speed.
We saw over the weekend as De La Cruz beat out a hard grounder to first base, but that came off a diving stop by Jose Abreu, which slowed the Astros first baseman down. On Monday against the Rockies, De La Cruz showed that he has the speed to beat out routine grounders that are fielded cleanly.
Elly De La Cruz is “fast af boiiii” pic.twitter.com/c85HXhtCEM
— CapWize (@CapWize) June 20, 2023
Batting in the sixth inning with a runner on and trailing by a run, De La Cruz hit a grounder to third that was fielded on a high bounce by third baseman Mike Moustakas. It should have been a play where Moustakas — despite having one of the weaker infield arms in baseball — was able to step into a hard throw to first. But De La Cruz’s speed forced the Rockies third baseman to rush the throw, and the result was a bouncing toss that De La Cruz easily beat out.
Rockies first baseman Nolan Jones was visibly stunned. He turned to the umpire as to ask, “How?” Well, De La Cruz’s speed is how.
It was a huge play too because De La Cruz ended up being the go-ahead run in that inning. His speed literally turned a routine out into an eventual run.
This won’t be the last time De La Cruz’s speed drastically impacts a game, and fans can’t get enough of watching him run.
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This was how Twitter reacted
Nolan Jones was STUNNED. Wish his face was toward the camera cause I know that jaw was on the dirt https://t.co/bT3P2X4fxI
— Coach Terry (@francescotnova) June 20, 2023
Imagine having a guy hustle like this on every play https://t.co/aQfffWkg9X
— Rick Hahn’s Burner (@RickHahnBurner) June 20, 2023
It’s actually insane how fast he is to first base https://t.co/ztKWpQHrmE
— Chase Claypool’s #1 Fan (@BigBlewsh) June 20, 2023
Good lord lol https://t.co/EEcEgyltFc
— Jon R (@jrick45) June 20, 2023
I’ve never seen plays like these https://t.co/rWrfRajQZ2
— Scott Nelson (@snelson2127) June 20, 2023
This is nuts man https://t.co/JHcN4h9jqA
— Smurff (@murphjusttlkn) June 20, 2023
This speed is INSANE https://t.co/lYLjILbkkM
— Duncan (@anthony_dunc) June 20, 2023
Wtf! This is crazy https://t.co/Z7qYxSVEKs
— Chris Sims (@iBeenChrisSims) June 20, 2023
With that speed, he’s going to force a lot of errors.
— Dallas (nickname) (@DallasF81534236) June 20, 2023
He’s going to make life very difficult for infielders.
