Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz improved his English speaking to communicate with media members better. Aside from that, he worked on his game to build on the promise he showed from last season. His efforts are paying off in what has been a fantastic April 2024.
Major League Baseball analyst and statistician Sarah Langs pointed out that De La Cruz has eight home runs and 17 stolen bases in the month. He got his first two home runs of the month on April 8 against the Milwaukee Brewers. He earned home runs against the Brewers (April 10) and the White Sox (April 12).
De La Cruz hit home runs in back-to-back games against the Seattle Mariners (April 17) and the Los Angeles Angels (April 19). He collected his seventh and eighth homers on April 23 (versus the Philadelphia Phillies) and April 29 (on the road versus the San Diego Padres).
As for stolen bases, he had three each on April 19 against the Los Angeles Angels and on April 24 against the Phillies. He had a stolen base in 11 games and four games with multiple stolen bases. Langs pointed out that De La Cruz is the first Major League Baseball player since 1901 to have that many home runs and stolen bases in a month.
Elly De La Cruz now has 8 HR and 17 SB in April
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 30, 2024
he's the 1st player with at least that many HR & SB in a calendar month (since at least 1901) https://t.co/gMPSvgeBd7
De La Cruz will face an uphill climb in tying the records for most home runs and stolen bases in a month. Rickey Henderson had 33 steals in July 1983, while Barry Bonds had 17 home runs in May 2001. However, the Dominican infielder can add to his total when the Reds face the San Diego Padres on April 30 at 9:49 p.m. Eastern Time.
-Lance Fernandez