Fastball

Cincinnati Reds Star Elly Da La Cruz Accomplishes a Record-Breaking Feat on Sunday

Cincinnati Reds infielder Elly De La Cruz continues to impress in his short time in the major leagues.

Brady Farkas

Cincinnati Reds Star Elly Da La Cruz Accomplishes a Record-Breaking Feat on Sunday
Cincinnati Reds Star Elly Da La Cruz Accomplishes a Record-Breaking Feat on Sunday /
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He's only been in the major leagues for a little over a month, but still, Cincinnati Reds infielder Elly De La Cruz continues to impress.

One of the most "toolsy" players in all of baseball, De La Cruz has prodigious power and lightning speed, but he also has a rocket for an arm, as evidenced on Sunday.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

fastest-tracked infield assists under Statcast (2015): 

Today Elly De La Cruz: 97.9 mph 

7/14/22 Oneil Cruz: 97.8 mph 

9/20/20 Fernando Tatis Jr.: 97.3 mph 

9/18/21 Fernando Tatis Jr.: 96.8 mph 

6/20/22 Oneil Cruz: 96.7 mph

So in just over a month, De La Cruz has already achieved the fastest throw from the infield recorded in more than eight years of data. That's just one of the many reasons that Reds fans were so excited to see him debut in early June.

At the time of this posting, the Reds lead the Brewers, 3-2, in the top of the sixth inning. That's important to note because the Reds offense had scored zero runs over the last three games, all shutout losses against the Brewers.

If the Reds are able to win this game, they'll pull back into a tie with Milwaukee for first place in the National League Central.

De La Cruz is 0-2 at the plate and is now hitting .301 on the season. The Reds have gotten their runs on a home run from Jake Fraley and a double from Joey Votto.

The Reds will play again on Monday against the San Francisco Giants.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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