Elly De La Cruz Injury News & Updates

De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a walk and two steals in Wednesday's 4-3 loss to the Guardians.

De La Cruz, whose second half slump prompted a drop in the order, continues to use his legs whenever possible. Aside from the two home runs he hit Tuesday, the rookie has reached base safely six times and stolen six bases over the last five games. The two thefts leave him with 35 over 95 games.

De La Cruz went 3-for-5 with two home runs, three runs scored and four RBI in Tuesday's 11-7 win over the Guardians.

Hunter Greene dug an early hole in what was nearly a must-win game for Cincinnati, but De La Cruz led a five-homer barrage by the Reds offense to mount a comeback, launching a solo shot off Lucas Giolito in the fourth inning before crushing a Xzavion Curry curveball to right field in the ninth for two insurance runs. It's the first multi-homer game of De La Cruz's brief career, and the long balls snapped a 28-game power drought. The 21-year-old is slashing just .192/.306/.288 in September thanks in large part to a 31.4 percent strikeout rate, but he still has 13 home runs and 33 steals in his first 94 big-league games.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a walk, two runs and two stolen bases in a loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday.

De La Cruz struck out three times in the contest, but he also thrilled after his only hit, following a second-inning single with a pair of steals before coming home to score on a fielder's choice groundout. The game was a pretty good synopsis of his rookie season thus far, as De La Cruz has posted a troublesome 34.3 percent strikeout rate while also notching 33 steals on 41 attempts. He's added a .231/.298/.394 slash line, 11 homers, 14 doubles, six triples, 36 RBI and 62 runs over 92 games.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a run scored and two stolen bases in Friday's 7-5 loss to Pittsburgh.

The good and bad of De La Cruz was on the display Friday. He stole second and third base and eventually scored to put the Reds on top in the second innings. He later committed a throwing error -- his 14th -- that allowed Pittsburgh's winning run to score. De La Cruz's bat may slumber, but his legs refuse to take a break. Despite going 3-for-19 over the last seven games, the rookie stole five bases during that stretch. De La Cruz is up to 31 steals through 91 games.

De La Cruz is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Twins.

De La Cruz is hitting .161 with zero home runs and six steals in 17 games this month. Noelvi Marte is starting at shortstop while Christian Encarnacion-Strand mans the hot corner.

De La Cruz batted ninth and went 0-for-4 in Sunday's 8-4 loss to the Mets.

De La Cruz's slide down the batting order reached its lowest point since he was called up in June. A second-half slump finally prompted manager David Bell to drop the rookie this past week. In his last four starts, De La Cruz batted seventh, eighth (twice) and ninth. It was encouraging to see him knock a pair of hits Saturday after getting a day off Friday, but the 21-year-old's struggles continued Sunday. De La Cruz has batted .184 since the All-Star break.

De La Cruz isn't in the Reds' lineup Friday against the Mets.

De La Cruz will take a seat Friday after going just 1-for-20 across his last seven games. Noelvi Marte will start at shortstop and bat sixth while De La Cruz regroups.

De La Cruz started at shortstop and walked twice before being removed for pinch hitter in Thursday's 8-2 loss to the Tigers.

De La Cruz's second-half slump has impacted his spot in the batting order as well as potential usage. The infielder batted seventh against left-hander Tuesday, was not in the starting lineup Wednesday for the first time since being called up, then batted eighth against a right-hander and was removed for a pinch hitter when a lefty reliever entered. In fact, manager David Bell unloaded a string of right-handed batters off the bench to pinch hit in the eighth inning, a sign that he's looking for every edge while the Reds battle for a playoff spot. Until this week, De La Cruz had been off limits to such tactics, but a .181 average and .606 OPS since the break has affected the exciting rookie.

De La Cruz is starting at shortstop and batting eighth for Thursday's game in Detroit.

De La Cruz didn't start Wednesday's game and a day later is in the lowest batting order position he's been in all season. The talented rookie homered and drove in six runs in the first game of a doubleheader versus the Angels back on Aug. 23, but in 20 games since then he's hit only .158/.256/.197 with a 32.2 percent strikeout rate.

De La Cruz entered Wednesday's game as a pinch runner and stole a base in a 4-3 win over the Tigers.

De La Cruz, who has slumped during the second half of the season, was held out of the starting lineup against lefty Eduardo Rodriguez on Wednesday. The switch-hitter had snapped an 0-for-22 run against southpaws the previous day. De La Cruz ran for Christian Encarnacion-Strand in the sixth inning and stole his 27th base, then stayed in the game to play shortstop and went 0-for-1. De La Cruz is batting .181 since the All-Star break.

De La Cruz is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Tigers.

De La Cruz is sporting a .459 OPS with no home runs over his last 19 games, so it's probably not a bad time for him to recharge his battery. Noelvi Marte will play shortstop Wednesday.

De La Cruz went 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and a stolen base in Tuesday's 7-6 win over Seattle.

De La Cruz scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Having been thrown out attempting to steal earlier in the game, the speedy and confident De La Cruz reached base on an infield single then stole second base. From there, he came in on Christian Encarnacion-Strand's walk-off single. The steal was De La Cruz's 25th in 32 attempts while in the majors. Including the minors, he's swiped 36 bags (caught 13 times).

De La Cruz went 0-for-4 with two walks, two stolen bases and two runs scored in Saturday's 8-7 extra-innings win over the Diamondbacks.

De La Cruz has done a lot of things since rising to the majors, but he hasn't shown a lot of patience at the plate with a 7.2 percent walk rate and 34.3 percent strikeout rate. The infielder's pair of walks Saturday accounted for just the fourth time he's drawn multiple walks in a game. He's still finding a fair amount of success with a .248/.304/.447 slash line, 22 steals, 11 home runs, 33 RBI and 52 runs scored over his first 69 contests.

De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with a triple, a home run, two runs scored and six RBI in a 9-4 win over the Angels during the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader.

The rookie struck out in his other three at-bats, but he continues to do significant damage when he makes contact. De La Cruz took Tyler Anderson deep in the fifth inning for a three-run shot while hitting right-handed, then ripped a bases-loaded triple into the right-field corner in the seventh after switching around to the left side of the plate to face Dominic Leone. It's De La Cruz's fifth multi-hit performance in the last 11 games, a stretch in which he's produced a double, three triples, two homers, three steals, six runs and 11 RBI despite fanning 18 times in 45 at-bats.

De La Cruz went 0-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Angels.

De La Cruz was off and running immediately, walking and stealing second in the first inning. The swipe was the 20th of the season for speedy De La Cruz, who achieved that milestone in 64 games. Combined with his work in the minors De La Cruz has 31 steals (caught 12 times) in 102 games.

De La Cruz went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple, an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 4-3 loss to Toronto.

De La Cruz's triple, which knocked in Matt McLain, turned into a Little League home run when Cavan Biggio's throw to the infield was ruled an error. De La Cruz has multiple hits in three of seven games and five RBI since dropping to third in the order.

De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with a home run in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader against Pittsburgh. He was 0-for-4 in the matinee.

De La Cruz made amends for his four-strikeout performance in the afternoon loss, crushing a 442-foot homer to tie the game in the third inning. The outfielder has four hits in 14 at-bats with a triple, a home run and four RBI since being dropped from leadoff to third in the order. The home run was his 10th in 58 games for the Reds and 22nd in 96 combined contests in the minors and majors.

De La Cruz batted third and went 2-for-5 with a triple, three RBI and a run scored in Friday's 9-2 win over the Pirates

For the first time since July 16, De La Cruz was not batting leadoff for the Reds. He'd slashed .207/.281/.414 in 22 games (21 starts) atop the order. In his first game out of three hole, De La Cruz delivered a two-run triple in the first inning and knocked in a run in the eighth. Reds manager David Bell told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer that's he'll stick with reconfigured top of the order, which had TJ Friedl leading off followed by Matt McLain second.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Thursday in a loss to the Cubs.

De La Cruz smashed a 424-foot blast on the first pitch of the contest for his second leadoff homer of the campaign. Of the rookie phenom's eight long balls this season, four have come over his past 10 games. However, De La Cruz struck out twice Thursday, and he's posted a massive 42 percent strikeout rate over 18 contests since the All-Star break.

De La Cruz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

The standout rookie will sit for just the third time since receiving the call to the majors in early June. Nick Senzel will enter the lineup at third base in place of De La Cruz, who heads to the bench after going 1-for-9 with six strikeouts and a walk between the first two games of the series in Chicago.

De La Cruz went 4-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Sunday's 9-0 win over the Dodgers.

De La Cruz had no trouble setting the table from the leadoff spot, and he also showed some power with his second-inning blast. Sunday's effort was already his third career four-hit game. The 21-year-old had gone 16 games without a multi-hit effort. He's now at a .277/.322/.473 slash line with seven homers, 20 RBI, 37 runs scored and 17 stolen bases through 46 contests.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run Monday in a loss to the Brewers.

De La Cruz led off the contest with a shot that appeared destined to clear the center-field fence but was robbed of a homer by Joey Wiemer. The Reds' rookie slugger ensured that wouldn't happen again in the third when he belted a monstrous 456-foot two-run blast that left American Family Field entirely. It was another highlight it what has been an explosive rookie campaign for De La Cruz, who has gone deep in each of his past two games after starting Saturday's contest against Arizona on the bench amidst what had been an extended slump.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 7-3 win over Arizona.

De La Cruz, who returned to the lineup after a one-day respite, led off the bottom of the first inning with his fifth homer in 40 games. The blast comes at a time when the electrifying rookie is mired in his first major slump. De La Cruz entered the game just 2-for-31 since the All-Star break.

De La Cruz will be on the bench for Saturday's game against the Diamondbacks.

De La Cruz sits for just the second time since being called up in early June. He's been stuck in a slump since the break, going 2-for-31 with strikeouts and dropping his OPS from .887 to .757. The arrival Christian Encarnacion-Strand crowds the Reds' roster, and the team is in the thick of a playoff race, so De La Cruz will need to keep performing to remain in an everyday role down the stretch.

De La Cruz batted leadoff and went 1-for-4 with a walk and was caught stealing in Thursday's 5-1 win over the Giants.

De La Cruz was atop the order for a fourth straight game, all coming against right-handers. TJ Friedl had served that role previously but was dropped to second behind De La Cruz. The dynamic De La Cruz has slumped since returning from the All-Star break, going 2-for-28 (.071) over seven games.

De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with two runs, an RBI and three stolen bases Saturday in an 8-5 win against Milwaukee.

De La Cruz seems to find a way to dazzle on a daily basis, and Saturday was no exception. The phenom provided a highlight-reel sequence in the seventh inning when he plated the go-ahead run with a two-out single, stole second, stole third and proceeded to steal home by catching the Brewers napping. De La Cruz has notched at least one theft in four straight games, going 12-for-22 (.545 average) with a home run, four RBI, five runs and seven steals during that stretch. He's already up to 16 stolen bases on the campaign despite having played in just 29 games.

De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a walk, stolen base and run scored in Friday's 7-3 loss to Milwaukee.

De La Cruz has steals in four straight and is up to 13 (caught twice) in 28 games since being promoted to the majors. The rookie also has hit safely in five straight, going 11-for-21 (.524) with three doubles, a home run, three RBI and five runs scored.

Washington manager Davey Martinez had De La Cruz's bat checked prior to his first at-bat in Wednesday's 9-2 win over the Nationals, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

De La Cruz uses a rubber sleeve over the knob of that bat, which normally houses an electronic telemetry device used as a swing tracker in batting practice. Umpires ordered him to remove the sleeve for his first at-bat, which ended in a strikeout. The Reds received clearance from MLB for De La Cruz to use the rubber housing, sans electronics, but that was not communicated to the umpiring crew prior to the game. Once MLB cleared the use of the the sleeve, De La Cruz launched a home run that traveled 455 feet in his next at-bat and added two doubles.

De La Cruz went 3-for-6 with two doubles, a solo home run and a steal in Wednesday's 9-2 victory over the Nationals.

De La Cruz crushed a 455-foot shot off Josiah Gray, extending the Reds' lead to 5-1 in the fifth inning, before adding two doubles and a stolen base later in the game. The star rookie is now 7-for-10 over his last two games, boosting his slash line to .318/.356/.536 with four homers, 25 runs scored, 14 RBI and 11 steals through his first 118 plate appearances.

De La Cruz went 4-for-4 with an RBI, a run scored and a steal in Tuesday's win over Washington.

It's already the 10th multi-hit effort for De La Cruz through 25 MLB games and his second four-hit performance. After a fast start to his career, De La Cruz had cooled off slightly, going 5-for-36 (.139) with one extra-base hit over his previous eight games. With his big game Tuesday, the 21-year-old infielder boosted his slash line back up to .308/.348/.490 with three homers, 23 runs scored, 13 RBI and 10 steals through 112 plate appearances this season.

De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base against Atlanta in a loss Saturday.

Though De La Cruz understandably couldn't match the buzz he generated with his first career cycle Friday, the rookie phenom continued to show why he's become an instant fantasy (and real-life) star by reaching base twice and nabbing a stolen base. He's in the midst of a seven-game hitting streak during which he's gone 15-for-30 with two homers, six RBI and three thefts. As evidence of his impact thus far, De La Cruz has either homered or swiped a bag in 10 of his first 16 games as a major-leaguer.

De La Cruz hit for the cycle Friday, going 4-for-5 with a solo homer, four total RBI, three runs scored and a steal in an 11-10 victory over Atlanta.

The 21-year-old became the first Reds player to hit for the cycle since Eric Davis in 1989. He added a steal for good measure, keeping him perfect on the basepaths at 7-for-7 in steal attempts. Friday's game was just De La Cruz's 15th in the majors, but he's already emerging as one of the club's leaders with a .361/.418/.656 slash line and all kinds of flare and personality to go with it. The Reds have won 12 straight games and De La Cruz has been a driving force, as he has more than lived up to the hype since his arrival.

De La Cruz went 3-for-4 with a solo homer, a double, an RBI and two runs scored in Tuesday's win over the Rockies.

De La Cruz got his night going with an opposite field blast in the third inning as part of the first three-hit performance of his young MLB career. The 21-year-old now has eight hits over his last four games and has raised his slash line to .308/.379/.519 to go with two homers, six RBI, 13 runs, six steals and a 6:19 BB:K over 58 plate appearances.

De La Cruz isn't in the Reds' lineup Friday against the Astros, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

After taking the majors by storm with a hot start to his MLB career, De La Cruz has cooled off as of late with just a .470 OPS over the last seven days. He'll get a day off Friday to regroup while Nick Senzel covers third base, Spencer Steer moves to left field and Kevin Newman starts at first.

De La Cruz went 0-for-3 with a run scored and a stolen base in Tuesday's victory over the Royals.

De La Cruz recorded a steal for the third straight game, showcasing the elite sprint speed that makes him one of the fastest players in MLB. The young phenom also struck out twice on the evening and has seen the issue carry over from Triple-A, having already recorded 14 in his first 30 at-bats in the bigs. De La Cruz has started every game since his promotion and is brimming with potential, so while the strikeouts are a bit of an issue early on, he has already settled in as a fixture in the heart of the order for the Reds.

De La Cruz went 2-for-3 with two walks, one RBI, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Cardinals.

De La Cruz has hit safely in each of his first six major-league games (8-for-22), and this was his second multi-hit effort. He's also posted a reasonable 5:10 BB:K through 27 plate appearances, showing some decent plate discipline for a rookie. Pitchers may eventually figure him out, but the Reds called him up because he's ready, so he should see consistent playing time -- he's played four times at third base and twice at shortstop so far. The top prospect already has three stolen bases in the majors after swiping 11 bags over 38 games for Triple-A Louisville.

De La Cruz went 2-for-4 with a triple, a two-run home run and an additional run scored in an 8-6 victory versus the Dodgers on Wednesday.

In his sixth big-league plate appearance, De La Cruz hammered a 458-foot two-run shot to right field in the first inning off veteran hurler Noah Syndergaard. The exit velocity on the homer was 114.8 mph, making it the hardest hit ball of the season so far for the Reds. De La Cruz is looking like an immediate difference-maker in fantasy leagues -- since his call-up, he's gone 3-for-7 with three-extra base hits and two walks as Cincinnati's cleanup hitter.

De La Cruz is batting cleanup and hitting fourth versus the Dodgers on Wednesday, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a double and two walks in his MLB debut against the Dodgers on Tuesday while playing third base, and he'll handle shortstop duties versus Noah Syndergaard and Los Angeles on Wednesday. Kevin Newman is playing third base and hitting eighth with Matt McLain lined up as the designated hitter while batting second.

De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a double, two walks and a run scored in Tuesday's 9-8 win over the Dodgers.

De La Cruz's first career MLB hit was a 112 MPH double to the gap in right center field, which is already the hardest hit ball by any Reds player this season. He showcased his patience by drawing two walks and also recorded a sprint speed of 30.4 feet per second. He has all the tools to be a star and should be a set it and forget it player in fantasy lineups now that he's up in the majors for good.

De La Cruz is playing third base and batting cleanup in his MLB debut Tuesday versus the Dodgers.

De La Cruz jumps right into a prominent spot in the Reds' lineup following his official promotion Tuesday afternoon from Triple-A Louisville, where he had registered a sparkling 1.031 OPS with 12 home runs and 11 stolen bases through 38 games. The dynamic 21-year-old top prospect can also play shortstop, but Matt McClain has locked down that gig since earning his own call-up in mid-May. Beyond third and short, De La Cruz should also be an option in the DH role for Cincinnati.

Cincinnati recalled De La Cruz from Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday.

One of the top overall prospects in baseball and absolutely dripping with multi-category fantasy upside, De La Cruz is set to make his major-league debut in the Reds' series opener Tuesday night against the visiting Dodgers. The 21-year-old infielder was sporting a robust .298/.398/.633 batting line with 12 home runs, 36 RBI, 11 stolen bases and 38 runs scored through 38 games (186 plate appearances) this season at the Triple-A level. He tallied 28 homers and 47 steals in 121 games last year between High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga. There are issues with strikeouts, but the sky is the limit on De La Cruz's long-term potential as a new era of Reds baseball begins.

De La Cruz is hitting .347 with a .467 OBP and five home runs in 12 games this month at Triple-A Louisville.

The most impressive aspect of De La Cruz's recent run of success is his improved contact rate and swing decisions. He has 10 walks and 10 strikeouts in his last 49 at-bats and is 2-for-6 on stolen-base attempts over that span. Matt McLain earned a promotion Monday to play shortstop for the Reds, but if De La Cruz's newfound plate skills hold, he should get a promotion of his own this summer.

De La Cruz (hamstring) has been activated from the minor-league injured list, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

De La Cruz is getting off to a delayed start this season after suffering a left hamstring strain toward the end of spring training, but the dynamic 21-year-old infield prospect can now continue his ascent through the Reds' minor-league system. He was assigned to Triple-A Louisville out of camp after slashing .304/.359/.586 with 28 home runs, 86 RBI, 47 stolen bases and 87 runs scored in 121 games last season between High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga. He could reach the majors in 2023 and would offer immediate fantasy intrigue.

Reds vice president of player development Shawn Pender announced Sunday that De La Cruz (hamstring) has resumed baseball activities, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

De La Cruz sustained a left hamstring strain left in spring training and has yet to make his debut for Triple-A Louisville. The 21-year-old is ranked as one of the top hitting prospects in baseball, and assuming good health, he could be a factor for the Reds before the end of the 2023 campaign.

De La Cruz suffered a left hamstring strain March 18 and will miss the start of the minor-league season, Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The 21-year-old apparently suffered the injury shortly after being reassigned to minor-league camp in mid-March, and he has a tentative return date of April 12. De La Cruz is one of the top prospects in baseball, and he's poised to play for Triple-A Louisville once healthy after he posted a .947 OPS between the High-A and Double-A levels last year.

De La Cruz was reassigned to minor-league camp by the Reds on Tuesday.

De La Cruz split time last season between High-A and Double-A, slashing .304/.359/.586 between the two levels. The Reds' top prospect will open the season with Triple-A Louisville and could crack the majors later in the year if he continues to tear through minor-league pitching.

De La Cruz tripled against the Royals' Aroldis Chapman on Saturday, and later homered in the Reds' spring training loss, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

De La Cruz hit the triple from the right-hand side and then later hit the homer left-handed. He's not going to make the Reds out of spring training most likely, given his age and lack of experience, but if he comes out firing right out of the chute, he could push for a midseason promotion.

De La Cruz will focus on shortstop this spring, despite playing some third base last season and in winter ball, C.Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

The Reds have a slew of shortstop prospects acquired through the draft, via international signings like De La Cruz, and in the trade market the last two seasons, so they'll have to sort out who ultimately sticks at shortstop and who moves elsewhere. For now, De La Cruz remains at short, but due to his size he could move over to third eventually.