De La Cruz Joins Elite Cincinnati Club After Steal in Toronto

De La Cruz joins elite Cincinnati club

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz has written his name into the franchise record books. During Friday's game against Toronto, the two time All Star secured his place in history by reaching 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in a single season.

The historic moment came in the third inning. De La Cruz hit a two run double and then immediately stole third base on the next pitch from Jose Soriano. This steal completed his historic milestone. He had already hit his 30th home run of the season on Thursday during a 7-6 victory against Atlanta.

Reds history and record breakers

De La Cruz is only the fourth player in the history of the Cincinnati Reds to achieve this feat. He joins Eric Davis, who hit 37 home runs and stole 50 bases in 1987. Barry Larkin also did it in 1996 with 33 home runs and 36 steals, followed by Brandon Phillips in 2007 with 30 home runs and 32 steals.

The young shortstop is also making history on a broader scale. He is the first Reds player and only the eighth player in the entire league since 1900 to record at least 30 steals in each of his first four seasons. Bobby Witt of Kansas City is the only other recent player to do this, achieving the feat from 2022 to 2025.

It was not all easy for De La Cruz on Friday. In his first at bat, he grounded out after Soriano made an impressive between the legs stop on a 94 mph ball hit back to the mound.