Elly De La Cruz keeps rewriting the Reds’ record book, and Thursday’s blast against the Braves gave him another line all to himself.
The 24-year-old launched his 30th homer of the season and his ninth in September, giving him the most home runs in a calendar month by a switch-hitter in franchise history. It’s just the latest marker in what has become the best season of his young career in 2026, with career highs now stacked up across batting average, home runs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, walks and OPS.
The September surge has been loud. De La Cruz is hitting .377/.461/.792 this month, good for a 1.253 OPS, and over his last 30 games he’s produced 10 homers and 20 RBI while batting .391/.466/.739. He’s also continued to flash the kind of defense that changes innings in an instant, while trimming his mistakes - he has 11 fewer errors than he did a year ago.
With three games left, De La Cruz is also on the doorstep of another milestone. He needs one stolen base to post a 30/30 season, which would make him just the second shortstop in Reds history to reach that mark.
Barry Larkin did it in 1996, and Brandon Phillips was the most recent player in franchise history to do it in 2007. De La Cruz, who wears No. 44 in honor of Eric Davis, would also be following the first player in Reds history to turn in a 30/30 season, Davis in 1987.
There’s also a bigger financial picture looming. This offseason will be De La Cruz’s first trip through arbitration, and his production this year points to a major raise.
The Reds reportedly made him a contract extension offer in 2025 that would have made him the highest-paid player in franchise history, but he turned it down. No financial details from that proposal were ever revealed.
“We engaged in Spring Training of 2025 and presented an offer,” Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall told MLB.com. “The offer would have been the largest contract in Reds history. We didn’t have any further conversations regarding the offer.”
Cincinnati has three games left, and the season ends north of the border against the Blue Jays in Toronto. It’s been a deeply frustrating year for the club, but De La Cruz has been one of the few bright spots down the stretch.
There are still a few more things to watch before the curtain falls. Sal Stewart is only three RBI behind the league leader and tied for second, putting him in position to become just the third rookie in Major League history to lead the league in that category if he can finish the job in this series.
The final three games also offer one last look at the rookies trying to carve out a future for 2027 and beyond. Juan Brito, Carlos Jorge and Hector Rodriguez have all had their growing pains, but they’re still auditioning for long-term roles.
Brito has been especially impressive since arriving from Cleveland at the trade deadline. Jorge set a Reds record Thursday with 11 putouts in the outfield in a nine-inning game, and Rodriguez has delivered some timely offense in limited chances.
Cincinnati sits in last place in the division, another hard truth in a season that never found its footing. The Reds haven’t won 90 games since 2013, the last time they also took the division. They managed to avoid finishing last in the division from 1984 through 2014, but since 2014 they’ve done it five times.
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