Elly De La Cruz’s slow start to the 2024 season ended abruptly on Monday when the Cincinnati Reds infielder recorded a pair of very different home runs: a dazzling inside-the-park job and a 450-foot bomb that briefly seemed destined on the banks of the Ohio River.
The home runs are the first two of the current campaign for De La Cruz, who has been criticized in 2024 for everything from his defense to his poor pitch selection.
The 22-year-old Dominican native raised his average to a healthy .297 with three hits in Monday’s dramatic 10-8 victory over the division rival Milwaukee Brewers. He also stole his sixth base of the season, better than all but the seven by Brewers second baseman Brice Turang.
But nothing from Monday could compare to De La Cruz’s electric inside-the-park home run.
Not only did he round the bases in less than 15 seconds, but De La Cruz wasn’t even coming out of the box and still managed to score on the ball that dipped past Sal Frelick in center before rolling toward the warning track.
Elly De La Cruz (left) poses for a photo with Hunter Greene (center) and Jeimer Candelario
Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds watches as her solo home run lands 450 feet away in center
De La Cruz reacts after hitting an inside-the-park home run against the Milwaukee Brewers i
“The whole bench yelled home run as soon as they saw the ball go by,” Reds manager David Bell told reporters afterward. ‘It is an exciting work. Every second is exciting. But it wasn’t that many seconds.
Frelick took a definite risk by diving for the ball, but for Brewers manager Pat Murphy, that was a risk he was willing to take given De La Cruz’s wheels.
“I don’t have a problem with Sal going for that ball, knowing who the hitter is,” Murphy told reporters afterward. The speed of the Reds we have faced over the last few years. “It’s a very good weapon for them.”
‘I think running the bases [is my biggest thrill]’ said De La Cruz, who recently began using English in interviews instead of an interpreter. “When I saw him fumble, I said, ‘I’m going home.’ That’s my mentality. I always think about the extra base.’
And that was just one of De La Cruz’s home runs on Monday.
Elly De La Cruz took 14.96 seconds to run 360 feet around the bases on Monday
The other landed in the middle of the batter’s eye at Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park, allowing De La Cruz a little more time to admire the long ball.
“The first (home run) was in the field I was looking for,” De La Cruz said of the fifth-inning home run.
After a bright start to his career in 2023, De La Cruz struggled down the stretch before finishing the season with a disappointing .300 on-base percentage and .235 average.
His 35 stolen bases were a pleasant surprise, but they barely made up for De La Cruz’s 144 strikeouts in 388 at-bats.
Unfortunately, De La Cruz’s strikeout rate has actually increased this year, as he has missed in 46 percent of his at-bats, compared to 36 percent in 2023.
It was all part of an extraordinary day for the Reds (6-4), as right fielder Will Benson also homered and Spencer Steer had two RBIs.
“It’s amazing, but we’re working to put Elly in that position,” Bell said. ‘He has been working very hard. It’s nice to see it pay off.”
The Reds led 8-0 after four innings and 9-3 after five. And the Brewers nearly rallied for an improbable victory.
Milwaukee’s Brice Turang hit a two-run homer in the fifth and a two-run double in the sixth. Christian Yelich’s two-run homer in the seventh inning, his fourth homer of the season, brought the Brewers within one.
Trailing 10-8 in the ninth, Milwaukee had runners on the corners with two outs. But Alexis Diaz got his second save when he retired Rhys Hoskins on a fly ball to right field.
Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds celebrates with Will Benson after hitting a solo home run
Milwaukee third baseman Joey Ortiz committed two of the team’s three errors and Cincinnati scored four unearned runs.
Benson’s second home run of the season lifted Cincinnati to a 2-0 lead in the second. It was the first home run of his career against a left-hander.
Benson added an RBI double in the fourth and scored on Steer’s double, helping the Reds build an 8-0 lead.
Aaron Ashby (0-1) allowed eight runs, four earned and six hits in 3 2/3 innings in his first start of the year for the Brewers. The left-hander missed last season after shoulder surgery.
Cincinnati starter Graham Ashcraft (1-1) shut out Milwaukee in the first four innings and then faltered. He allowed six runs, five earned, and nine hits in 5 2/3 innings.
Stuart Fairchild gave the Reds a boost when he robbed Willy Adames of a solo home run with a leap to right of the sixth. Fairchild also walked two and scored a run.