Elly De La Cruz moved within one swing and one steal of a 30-30 season Tuesday night, powering the Reds past Atlanta, 4-0, at Truist Park while adding another chapter to Cincinnati’s late-season push for individual milestones.
The Reds shortstop walked in the first inning against Braves right-hander JR Ritchie, then stole second with a headfirst slide for his 29th stolen base of 2026. Two innings later, De La Cruz turned on a 2-0 curveball and sent it to right field for a two-out solo shot, his 29th home run.
At 24, De La Cruz is now positioned to become the fourth player in Reds history with at least 30 homers and 30 steals in one season. Eric Davis did it in 1987, Barry Larkin followed in 1996, and Brandon Phillips joined the group in 2007.
“I’d like to get there, but I’m not focused on those things right now,” De La Cruz said. “I’m enjoying playing.”
De La Cruz heating up at the right time
Tuesday continued a blistering run for De La Cruz, who has reached base in 27 of his last 28 games. Over that stretch, he is batting .411 with a 1.245 OPS, nine home runs, seven steals without being caught and 26 runs scored.
He said the simple approach has kept him centered as the numbers and milestones begin to gather attention.
“Every time I get the chance to be out there, I enjoy it and have fun,” De La Cruz said. “I’m enjoying it completely.”
Third baseman Eugenio Suárez, who watched De La Cruz contribute at shortstop as well as in the lineup, said the young star’s energy has been impossible to miss.
“He has been tremendous,” Suárez said. “Watching what he does defensively, offensively and from both sides of the plate is a lot of fun. I’m happy to be beside him while he’s having success late in the season.”
Suárez said his message to De La Cruz is to keep raising the bar.
“I tell him not to stop,” Suárez said. “Keep being the player who wants more every year.”
Suárez reaches 350 as Stewart chases RBI history
Suárez supplied another landmark in the eighth inning, leading off with a home run to left-center field. The blast was the 350th of his career, making him the 10th active player to reach that total.
“I let it come naturally, and I felt like eventually it would happen,” Suárez said. “Tonight was the night. I got it done, and helping the team win mattered most.”
Rookie Sal Stewart, meanwhile, entered the night with 110 RBIs, one behind Cardinals hitter Alec Burleson for the Major League lead. Stewart remained at 110 after the win, but his season still carries rare historical possibilities.
Only two rookies have finished a season atop the Major League RBI leaderboard since the statistic became official in 1920: Ted Williams in 1939 and Walt Dropo in 1950.
Stewart, 22, has 32 homers but has cooled during the final month, recording one home run and five RBIs over his past 20 games. He said he is trying to avoid turning the RBI chase into a daily burden.
“It would obviously be very cool, but I don’t want to chase it,” Stewart said. “I want to play as well as I can and enjoy the game. Only two players have done it, but it is not my main priority.”
Francona keeps the focus on winning baseball
Manager Terry Francona welcomed the possibility of awards and historic totals for his players, but he stressed that the club cannot lose its footing while tracking them.
“I always want our players to be at their best,” Francona said before the game. “Of course, I’d like Sal to win awards and things like that. But I don’t spend much time on the other stuff. The message is to play the game the right way. When you start watching everything else, you can drift away from that.”
There was still room for a little clubhouse mischief in the field. In the second inning, Ozzie Albies popped a ball into foul territory, where Suárez settled beneath it. De La Cruz gave Suárez a playful shove and made the catch himself.
De La Cruz has pulled similar pranks with teammates before, although one such moment back in 2024 distracted then-second baseman Jonathan India and led to an error.
Suárez said Tuesday’s play was part of an ongoing joke between the two Reds.
“We joke around before games,” Suárez said. “I told him I would catch every fly ball that came my way. I did not call that one because I knew he would be there. I made it fun, and I knew he would make the catch.”
De La Cruz offered his own version of the arrangement: “I called it. Every fly ball is mine, so move out of the way.”
