Elly De La Cruz Extends Hitting Streak, Adds Two More Steals
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz stayed scalding-hot in Wednesday afternoon's win over the hosting Atlanta Braves, homering and stealing two bases in the victory. De La Cruz connected for a solo home run off Braves right-hander Allan Winans to right field, extending the Reds' lead to 5-3 during the third inning on Wednesday. The 22-year-old rising superstar has already reached the 50-steal mark through 101 contests overall for Cincinnati this season. Over his current 10-game hitting streak, De La Cruz is batting .357 (15-for-42) with three homers, five RBI, eight runs scored, and six stolen bases.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz continued to show off his blazing speed in Monday's 4-1 win over the Braves. De La Cruz went 2-for-4 with a single, a triple, a walk, two strikeouts, and a stolen base. The 22-year-old has been by far the top base stealer in baseball this season, slashing .258/.350/.487 with 17 home runs, 67 runs scored, 44 RBI, and 49 stolen bases in 431 plate appearances. His lone blemish is his 31.1% strikeout rate, a facet of his game that has always been lacking. However, he offers so much else for fantasy managers that he is still a top fantasy performer. Even if he were only to play 150 games this season, that would put De La Cruz on a 74-steal pace.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz will get a day off for the series finale on Thursday against the visiting Colorado Rockies. Santiago Espinal will replace him at shortstop for the Reds and will bat in the eight-hole against Rockies left-hander Austin Gomber. With a southpaw on the mound for the Rockies, De La Cruz will get just his second day off of the season. The 22-year-old has been dealing with a minor hand injury recently, but his absence from Cincy's lineup has nothing to do with that. The first-time All-Star is hitting just .235 (8-for-34) with a homer, two doubles, a triple, three RBI, 13 strikeouts and five stolen bases in nine games so far in July but is a must-start in all fantasy lineups when he's active. De La Cruz currently leads the league in triples (six), stolen bases (45) and strikeouts (124) in 93 games played.
Elly De La Cruz Collects Two Hits, Two Stolen Bases Monday
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz continued to show off his speed in Monday's 6-0 win over the Rockies. De La Cruz went 2-for-3 with a single, a double, an RBI, a walk, and two stolen bases. He was also caught stealing once. The 22-year-old has provided the power-speed combination fantasy managers were dreaming of, slashing .251/.344/.469 with 15 home runs, 62 runs scored, 40 RBI, and 45 stolen bases in 389 plate appearances. He has been a high-end fantasy performer and has his first All-Star appearance nod to show for it.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz smacked a two-run homer and picked up a triple with another run scored Tuesday night in a 5-4 victory against the New York Yankees. The home run was De La Cruz's 15th on the season and with 40 stolen bases at roughly the halfway mark, he's well on pace to have an incredible season. His .254 batting average isn't horrible, but also nothing to write home about, though his .343 OBP is an encouraging improvement over the .300 OBP he accrued during his rookie season. It's inevitable the young superstar will have his fair share of ups and downs throughout the season, but his ceiling is so high it's worth every amount of risk that he carries with him.
Elly De La Cruz Falls A Triple Shy Of The Cycle Monday
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz had another solid offensive game in Monday's 11-5 win over the Pirates. De La Cruz went 3-for-5 with a single, a double, a two-run home run, and three RBI. The 22-year-old obliterated a sixth-inning Daulton Jefferies offering deep to center field for his 14th long ball of the season. De La Cruz has provided the power-speed combo fantasy managers were hoping for, slashing .249/.342/.464 with 52 runs scored, 35 RBI, and 37 stolen bases in 332 plate appearances. His batting average is mediocre and he is still striking out too much at a 31.0% clip, but fantasy managers will easily overlook this given his elite counting stat production.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz posted three hits in a 4-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox on Saturday. Cruz went 3-for-5 with a solo homer but was caught stealing in his team's loss to Boston. The solo homer came off Boston starter Nick Pivetta in the third inning and traveled 407 feet with an exit velocity of 104.3 MPH. De La Cruz is putting together a productive sophomore season for the Reds, hitting .240 with 13 homers, 48 runs, 32 RBI, and 37 steals across 279 at-bats. While his batting average is a little rough, De La Cruz brings a dangerous power/speed element to the game, keeping his fantasy value high.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz reached base four times in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. De La Cruz did his part in this one, going 2-for-3 with a homer, a triple, and two walks. He scored three runs, drove in one, and stole a base to round out a terrific overall stat line. The dynamic 22-year-old has slowed down at the dish since April but has been coming around a bit lately, smacking three homers and stealing four bases since June 5. He might be a little bit of a roller coaster for fantasy managers, but he will have elite stolen base numbers and will go on runs where he is on of the best players in baseball.
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz went 1-for-5 in Thursday's victory over the division rival Chicago Cubs. De La Cruz's lone hit would be a big one, when he blasted a 390 foot, three-run home run off Javier Assad in the bottom of the sixth inning. The star-studded shortstop had a tough month of May, but he has already been loving June and has a mini four-game hit streak. De La Cruz has shown that he is the complete package when everything is coming together and has become one of the better offensive players in all formats with his ability to help across the board. For the season, De La Cruz is now hitting .240 with 11 homers, 29 RBI and 32 stolen bases. Managers should continue to enjoy the excitement and productivity that De La Cruz provides.
Elly De La Cruz Racks Up Four Hits, Four Steals on Thursday
Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz had a monster game on Thursday, going 4-for-4 with a double, three runs, an RBI, and an astounding four stolen bases. De La Cruz is now at 30 swipes on the season, putting him on a pace not seen since the 1980s. Although he has slowed down at the dish in May, he is still a major fantasy asset due to his stolen bases. He also has a .277 AVG, 35 runs, nine homers, and 22 RBI to round out his line, making him a five-category contributor. He's looking like a future first-rounder in fantasy leagues at this point.
