Elly De La Cruz Fantasy Stats

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz can do things on a baseball field that most big-league players can only dream of. And while the two-time All-Star might be slightly underwhelming through his first 55 games in 2026, we would advise against selling him with the start of June right around the corner. The 24-year-old Dominican switch-hitter is currently slashing .279/.346/.509 with an .855 OPS, 12 home runs, 37 RBI, 38 runs scored, and nine stolen bases across 246 plate appearances. Considering De La Cruz stole a league-high 67 bases in 2024, his nine thefts so far are a slight disappointment, but fantasy managers can't really complain otherwise. He's on pace to set a new career high in home runs, and his batting average is a career high right now. Under the hood, De La Cruz is in the 95th percentile in hard-hit rate, the 80th percentile in xwOBA, and the 87th percentile in expected slugging. He also has an average exit velocity of 94.1, which ranks ninth in the big leagues. If you end up trading the five-category contributor, you'll likely regret it by the end of 2026.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz is off to a very strong pace early in the 2026 season, and that continued in a big way on Tuesday night in the team's 12-6 win over the Rays in Tampa. De La Cruz went 3-for-6 at the plate with two home runs, five RBI, three runs scored, a stolen base, and a strikeout to boost his season average to .276 and his OPS to .914. The 24-year-old switch-hitting Dominican is a superstar, make no mistake about it. His .264/.336/.440 slash line with 22 home runs, 86 RBI, and 37 stolen bases in 2025 was considered a disappointment after he stole a league-high 67 bases the year prior in 2024. De La Cruz is already up to eight home runs, six steals, 18 RBI, and 21 runs scored in his first 24 games of the season. If De La Cruz stays healthy all season long, he should be near the top of leaderboards in multiple fantasy baseball categories because of his dynamic athletic traits on a baseball field. Not only is he an elite athlete, but he plays in a hitter-friendly home ballpark. De La Cruz is a stud and is a must-start in fantasy.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz is coming off back-to-back seasons with 20+ homers and 30+ stolen bases, and he is well on his way to another big season of both power and speed. Through 12 games, he has three homers and three stolen bases, which puts him on pace for over 40 homers and 40 stolen bases. While he may not quite reach those numbers, he remains an elite option at shortstop with those big contributions, even though his .234 batting average leaves lots of room for improvement. His hard-hit rate is up this season, though, so his low average seems mostly due to bad BABIP luck. If his average rises, he'll have even more chances to run and rack up more stolen bases as the season goes on. If he stays healthy, De La Cruz seems on track for another huge season.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz is fully healthy this spring, which is evident by the way the ball is bouncing off his bat in spring training and by the way he's gliding around the bases, according to Charlie Goldsmith. "I've always been healthy," De La Cruz said. "It feels good to be healthy. That's for everybody. Everybody wants to be healthy to be able to play every day. I'm excited. I feel proud of my work. I put a lot of work in the offseason. It feels good to see it working." He has five hits in his first nine Cactus League at-bats, which includes three doubles, a triple, and a homer. It appears the 24-year-old's work in the offseason to get stronger is already paying off at the plate. De La Cruz battled a significant quad injury in the second half of 2025 and went into a prolonged slump where he didn't homer over a 74-game stretch. The Dominican was still an All-Star and stole 37 bases and hit 22 home runs, but it was a drop from his 2024 numbers. With better health this year, De La Cruz could easily end up being the most valuable fantasy shortstop in 2026.

In his first full MLB season in 2024, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz put his upside on display, slashing .259/.339/.471 with an .809 OPS, 25 home runs, 76 RBI, 105 runs scored, and a league-high 67 stolen bases in 160 games played. It wasn't all great, though, as he also led the league with 218 strikeouts. The 24-year-old switch-hitting Dominican hit a career-high .264 in 2025, but he took a step back in the power department (22 home runs) and in steals (37) over 162 games. De La Cruz really struggled down the stretch and went through a 74-game stretch in which he hit just one home run. A lingering quad injury that he played through for most of the year might be to blame. There's no denying De La Cruz's elite athleticism, especially on the base paths, and RotoBaller still considers him a top-15 overall fantasy player going into his fourth year with the Reds.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz won't participate in the upcoming 2026 World Baseball Classic tournament. He was expected to represent the Dominican Republic in the tourney, but that won't be happening now. The Reds reportedly have told De La Cruz to skip the WBC and focus on his health after battling a quad injury during the second half of the season. You can't blame the Reds for wanting to make sure their star infielder is healthy heading into the 2026 season. We've seen players get injured during the tourney before, and the Reds don't want to take that chance. It would be exciting to see De La Cruz play for his home country, but maybe he can play in the next one.

The Cincinnati Reds offered star shortstop Elly De La Cruz a contract extension last spring that would have been the largest contract in franchise history, according to MLB.com's Manny Randhawa, but De La Cruz declined the offer. The largest current contract in Reds history is Joey Votto's 10-year, $225 million deal in 2012. De La Cruz became the fifth player in MLB history to hit at least 20 home runs (25) and steal at least 60 bases (67) in a single season in 2024. The 6-foot-5, 200-pounder took a step back offensively in 2025, though, hitting 22 home runs and stealing 37 bases in 162 games played. However, a left-quad injury that he played with during the second half of the season may have been to blame. Despite his defensive shortcomings, De La Cruz is an elite athlete who could definitely bounce back offensively in 2026 with better health.

In a media appearance on Wednesday night, Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall said that shortstop Elly De La Cruz (quad) played through a"partial torn quad" from late July onwards, per Doug Gray of Redleg Nation. Krall later attempted to clarify his statements by calling the injury "more nagging than serious," but Krall also said that De La Cruz has been "rehabbing this whole offseason." It certainly sounds as though De La Cruz was playing through a significant leg injury for the final two-plus months of the 2025 season. Overall, De La Cruz slashed .264/.336/.440 with 22 home runs, 86 RBI, 102 runs scored, and 38 stolen bases across 699 plate appearances. However, the 23-year-old hit just .221 with three home runs and eight stolen bases from August onwards. If De La Cruz can get fully healthy heading into the 2026 season, he could push closer towards the 67 stolen bases he racked up in 2024 than the 38 he collected in 2025. The health of De La Cruz's quad is something for fantasy managers to monitor over the course of the winter.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz won't be moving positions for the upcoming 2026 season. There was speculation that the Reds would shift De La Cruz elsewhere after leading the league in errors. The thought was that the Reds would move De La Cruz into the outfield much like the Pittsburgh Pirates did with Oneil Cruz due to his defensive skills. The Reds also have shortstop prospect Edwin Arroyo waiting in the wings, so moving De La Cruz does make sense on paper. For now, the Reds are keeping De La Cruz at shortstop, but they might have to make a tough decision once Arroyo is ready for the big league level.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz has been dropped to seventh in the batting order on Monday at Busch Stadium for the series opener against the division-rival St. Louis Cardinals and left-hander Matthew Liberatore. This will be the first time all season that De La Cruz has hit anywhere besides third in the lineup. However, the 23-year-old switch-hitter is mired in a slump that has seen him hit just .206/.243/.291 since Aug. 1. The Dominican shortstop has not homered since July 31, and his recent cold stretch has dropped his season slash line to .263/.331/.433 with 19 home runs, 82 RBI, 97 runs and 35 stolen bases in 586 at-bats. The Reds desperately need to get De La Cruz going if they are going to have any chance of sneaking into the final wild-card spot in the National League. He has hit .250 with a home run and a .900 OPS in eight career at-bats against Liberatore.