Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
The Reds rookie notched his first MLB home run on Wednesday night and he was just getting started
Excitement built throughout the day Tuesday, and into Tuesday night, when word broke that the Cincinnati Reds were calling up dynamic shortstop Elly De La Cruz for his first taste of big league action.
The hype train will only continue after tonight.
The switch-hitting shortstop recorded his first MLB hit in his debut on Tuesday, driving a liner into the gap in right-center field and, using his incredible speed, legging it out for a double. And while that line drive rocketed off his bat at 112 miles per hour, it was nothing in comparison to what he did early in Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
When he hit his first big league home run.
Or, more accurately, destroyed his first big league home run:
This is a 92-mph fastball up and in, and he not only pulls it, but he launches it to the absolute back of the bleachers.
According to Baseball Savant, the exit velocity on this home run logged in at 114.8 mph, and. the ball traveled 458 feet.
Remember, this is just his second MLB game.
There is a lot of excitement surrounding De La Cruz, and with good reason. Not only does he hit for power, but he absolutely crushes the baseball, even when it stays in the park. As noted above the exit velocity on his first big league hit was 112, and this year in the minors his average exit velocity was 93 miles per hour:
Just listen to the sound on that hit from this angle:
He is also incredibly fast, and before being called up he had 11 stolen bases in 38 Triple-A games. Add in his 12 home runs, and you have quite the dynamic package.
He showed off that speed in his second at-bat Wednesday night, as he turned a liner into the right-center gap into a triple:
How fast was he on this hit? Consider these numbers:
That was 10.83 home to third on the triple for Elly De La Cruz.
That’s the fastest time home to first by anyone in the majors this year.
Corbin Carroll’s 10.97 is second fastest.
— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) June 8, 2023
Oh, and he is 6’5, and yes a switch-hitting shortstop.
Elly De La Cruz now has the hardest hit ball by any Reds player this year (114.8 mph HR, tonight).
And the second hardest hit ball (112.0 mph 2B, last night).
And the 19th hardest hit ball (108.7 mph 4-3, last night).
He’s had four at-bats so far as a Red.
— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) June 7, 2023
There are some concerns, such as his long-term position in the Reds’ organization and his strikeout numbers against left-handed pitching. But with moments like these from his first two nights in the majors, it does feel like something special is happening in Cincinnati.
