On Saturday afternoon the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers continued their important three-game series at American Family Field. The Reds rallied late to win Saturday's game (CIN 8, MIL 5) and now have a two-game lead over the Brewers in the NL Central. These two clubs have separated themselves from the rest of the pack in the division. It's a two-team race at the moment.
The score was tied 5-5 in the seventh inning when Elly De La Cruz, Cincinnati's seemingly superhuman infielder, put his team on his back. He gave the Reds a 6-5 lead with an RBI single to left to score TJ Friedl. De La Cruz then stole second, stole third, and stole home to make it a 7-5 game, all in the span of two pitches. He stole home on the catcher's throw back to the pitcher.
Check it out:
Unreal. Those three stolen bases are De La Cruz's 14th, 15th and 16th steals of the season. He was called up on June 6, and his 16 steals are the most in baseball since his debut. De La Cruz owns a .328/.366/.533 batting line with four home runs and 1.1 WAR in 28 games. He's been an instant superstar for the Reds.
"It's so rare. It's so much fun to watch," Reds manager David Bell said about De La Cruz's adventure on the bases. "It's one of those plays that is so rare. I am not sure it's even ever happened on two pitches."
According to Baseball Almanac, De La Cruz is the first player to steal every base in an inning since Miami Marlins speedster Jon Berti on Aug. 25, 2020. He's the first Reds player to do it since Greasy Neale on Aug. 15, 1919. Neale went on to become a Hall of Fame NFL coach who led the Philadelphia Eagles to championships in 1948 and 1949.
The Reds are 50-40 on the season and 23-7 since De La Cruz was called up. Only the Atlanta Braves at 24-4 have a better record than Cincinnati since De La Cruz's debut. He's a franchise-altering talent and his impact was on full display in one trip around the bases Saturday.
Our R.J. Anderson ranked De La Cruz the No. 11 prospect in baseball coming into 2023, calling him "perhaps the most unusual prospect in the minors" because of his size, freakish athleticism and skills.
