CINCINNATI – Elly De La Cruz has been durable and played through injuries since debuting for the Reds in 2023. So when De La Cruz pulled up running to first base on a hit to the wall, it was clear something was wrong.
A two-time All-Star shortstop, De La Cruz left Sunday's 6-4 win over the Braves with right hamstring tightness. The immediate feeling from the club and the 24-year-old was that he avoided a more serious injury by not trying to continue running on the play.
“When I started running and then when I got to first, I felt tightness in my hamstring and immediately I decided to stop because I felt like if I keep going, this can get worse," De La Cruz said via translator Tomas Vera.
An MRI for De La Cruz has been scheduled for Monday morning.
“I don’t believe it’s something bad, I really don’t," De La Cruz said. "Obviously, we’re going to see what the MRI says tomorrow. But I don’t feel like it’s something really bad at this moment.”
Matt McLain replaced De La Cruz as a pinch-runner and took over at shortstop.
Coming into the day mired in a 1-for-12 slump with five strikeouts, De La Cruz was enjoying a nice afternoon vs. Atlanta, going 2-for-2 with a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored. In the fifth inning, he launched what should have been an extra-base hit to right field, but slowed as he rounded first base.
After a couple of moments with the trainer and manager Terry Francona, De La Cruz walked to the dugout and into the Reds clubhouse.
“I saw him pull up and then I saw him just stand there and I thought maybe I missed something," Francona said. "He didn’t reach for anything or anything like that. He’s a pretty miraculous kid. Let’s wait and see what happens.”
“I don’t like to be out of the game but honestly, I don’t feel that bad," De La Cruz said. "Obviously, I would like to see that I can play. I don’t know if I’m going to be playing tomorrow. We’re going to wait to see what’s going on but yeah, it’s a little frustrating.”
De La Cruz's streak of 276 consecutive games played could be in jeopardy if he's unable to return to the lineup on Monday. He had started every game this season and all but one last season. His streak is the third-longest active games played streak in MLB behind Matt Olson (843) and Pete Alonso (475).
In 58 games this season, De La Cruz is batting .280 with an .855 OPS while tied with Sal Stewart for the team lead in home runs (12), RBIs (37) and stolen bases (10).
“He’s the heart and soul of this team. You know when everyone thinks Reds right now, they’re thinking of Elly De La Cruz," left fielder JJ Bleday said. "Hopefully, it’s nothing serious on that end. We have to hope and pray it’s nothing serious and regardless, just kind of keep showing up right now and try to win ballgames.”
If De La Cruz is unable to play for a while, the Reds could call up No. 3 prospect Edwin Arroyo from Triple-A Louisville. Arroyo was not in Louisville's lineup already on Sunday but according to a source, it was just a day off.
In 53 games this season entering Sunday, Arroyo is batting .323 with a .945 OPS, 11 home runs and 34 RBIs.
However, De La Cruz felt like his quick thinking prevented a potentially long absence.
“I think it’s a really important thing that happened when I made that decision on my own because I really feel that if I kept pushing, it would be worse," he said. "I felt that was the right thing to do.”