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Elly De La Cruz continues to add his name to the Major League Baseball record books.
On Friday, the Cincinnati Reds superstar became just the second player in MLB history to record 200 extra-base hits and 150 stolen bases within his first four career seasons, joining Juan Samuel, who accomplished the feat from 1983-86.
De La Cruz was snubbed from the All-Star Game and he came out of the break on absolute fire in Friday's win over the Colorado Rockies.
In De La Cruz's first three at-bats, he hit three singles, all of which came on the first pitch of the at-bat.
In the 9th, Elly De La Cruz hit a towering shot over the right field wall for his 16th home run of the season.
Despite missing a couple of weeks due to a hamstring injury, De La Cruz is having the best season of his career.
The 24-year-old is slashing .282/.354/.506 with 34 extra-base hits and 14 stolen bases.
The Reds held their annual opposite-field hitting contest on Thursday and Reds manager Terry Francona thinks it translated to what he saw from De La Cruz on Friday night.
Last night he came and he didnt try to see how far he could hit the ball.
He hit the ball the other way with authority," Francona said.
"I just feel really strongly that when guys are doing that, they have better balance, they cover more pitches.
Spencer Steer's Big Night Spencer Steer has had a nice season for the Reds and he continued that last night.
Not only did Steer hit a home run that left the yard, but he also added an inside-the-park-home run, his 16th of the season.
As first noted by Charlie Goldsmith in his Charlie's Chalkboard newsletter, Spencer Steer is one of just 14 players in Major League Baseball with at least 80 home runs and 50 stolen bases since the start of the 2023 season.
The only other players to accomplish the feat are Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, Jose Ramirez, Francisco Lindor, Gunnar Henderson, Julio Rodriguez, Bobby Witt Jr., Corbin Carroll, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Cody Bellinger, Randy Arozarena, George Springer and Kyle Tucker.
That was exciting," Steer said.
"That was my first one ever...It felt like it took me 20 minutes to catch my breath.
I was struggling there for a little bit, but obviously worth it." The Reds will be back in action on Saturday afternoon at 3:10 ET.
Rhett Lowder will take the mound for the Reds.
Greg Kuffner a contributor to Reds On SI.
He graduated from the University of Cincinnati and worked for the Sports Information Department during his time as a student.
He follows all things Reds year round, including the minor league system.
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