"If we can help him with that, it can really make a difference," Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said of Elly De La Cruz.
PHOENIX – He’s a two-time All-Star who leads the Cincinnati Reds in home runs, stolen bases and runs batted in. And he plays literally every game (through rain, sleet, quads and hammies).
So what’s left for Elly De La Cruz to show as an all-around offensive baseball weapon?
Reds manager Terry Francona has one more thing.
“The last piece for him is when he steals he doesn’t pick up the ball,” Francona said. “Some guys have trouble doing that.
“Next spring that will be a focus for us.”
De La Cruz has been one of the fastest players in the game since he debuted in June 2023. He led the majors with 67 steals last year.
“Elly does a really good job (seeing the ball on hits), but on the base stealing, he just goes,” Francona said. “We’ve seen a number of times, like on a foul ball, he’s diving. If we can help him with that, it can really make a difference.”
A pair of examples of De La Cruz weaponizing awareness on the bases were the two runs he scored from first base on hits that barely reached the outfield grass in a game last week against the Angels in Anaheim, including one that he picked up right away after he broke for second on the pitch.
“It was impressive on a number of fronts, not just physically,” Francona said. “He knew where the ball was.”
If he can add that to his game on steal attempts? Maybe pick up a dropped ball or bad throw quicker?
“When you know where the ball is, like on those balls (in Anaheim), you can see how devastating he can be,” Francona said. “And we can’t do it now. We just can’t start practicing stealing bases in August.
“But I want our entire team to (work on it next spring),” he said. “Because if the majority of our guys, if they take that second step and they can glance in and get used to it, they’re going to be much more intelligent base runners, because they’re going to know where the ball is.”
As if De La Cruz wasn’t already one of the most dangerous players in baseball on the bases – even during a 2025 season when he has had to manage hamstring and quad tightness without missing a game (stealing 31 bases in 37 tries).
“If you’re running and you don’t know where the ball is, it’s hard to be confident in where you’re going,” Francona said.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What Terry Francona wants next from Cincinnati Reds’ Elly De La Cruz
Category: Baseball
