Elly (right hamstring) to come off IL on Tuesday; Pagán also making progress
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CINCINNATI -- With Elly De La Cruz's timeline and progress from a rehab assignment going as planned, manager Terry Francona confirmed the expected. The superstar shortstop will be activated from the injured list Tuesday.
And closer Emilio Pagán may not be very far behind De La Cruz.
On Monday, De La Cruz was among three batters who faced Pagán in live batting practice for a simulated game situation. He hit a ball hard into right field the first time up and was in the midst of another at-bat when the session was stopped as Pagán reached his limit of 25 pitches.
“I’m attacking anybody who’s in the box, to be honest. But obviously, Elly is one of the best players on the planet. And facing him is an honor," Pagán said afterward. "There’s a lot of people that play baseball that would like to have the opportunity I just had. I don’t take that lightly.”
De La Cruz, who strained his right hamstring on May 31 against the Braves and went on the IL the following day, completed a three-game rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville over the weekend. He connected on a home run Friday while playing five innings at shortstop. That was followed with an 0-for-3 game as the Bats' designated hitter Saturday. De La Cruz went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and an error on Sunday before being pinch-hit for in the eighth inning.
Before going on the IL for the first time in his big league career, De La Cruz was batting .280 with an .855 OPS and 12 home runs in 58 games.
Pagán, 35, has been on the injured list since he strained his left hamstring pitching on May 5 for Cincinnati against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He threw his first live BP session to hitters at Yankee Stadium on Friday.
“Better than New York. Stuff felt like it was better," Pagán said of Monday's effort. "I’ll wait to see what the iPad and everything says, but command was better on the offspeed pitches, especially on the breaking ball. Splitter is coming along, but I didn’t leave it in spots where I could get hurt. So, I feel really good.”
Pagán faced De La Cruz, Will Benson and Dane Myers, and he treated it like he was in real game conditions. Although he didn't request it, Pagán's walk-out song -- "Kingdom" by Downstait -- was even played at an empty Great American Ball Park as he ran to the mound from the bullpen.
“I told all three of those guys there’s not really a fun spot to go in the zone. All three of those guys can clear you out and leave the yard if you make a mistake," Pagán said. "Just trying to treat it like I was in a one-run game and not make a mistake over the plate where they could get the barrel to it.
"Elly hit one hard. He does that against a lot of people, so I don’t really feel that bad to be honest. But that was at the end of an eight-pitch battle and I’m going to challenge anybody in the zone there at the end. That was fun.”
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Pagán has a 6.43 ERA and six saves in nine chances this season, but had a 2.88 ERA and a career-high 32 saves for Cincinnati last year. He was brought back as a free agent with a two-year, $20 million contract.
The Reds also got back high-leverage reliever Pierce Johnson among Monday's roster moves. Johnson had missed three weeks with right elbow inflammation.
If Pagán still feels good Tuesday, the plan is for him to begin a rehab assignment at Louisville on Thursday.
“Hopefully today was good enough that it’s just one game," he said. "We’ll see.”