Elly De La Cruz has put together an All-Star season in 2025, and become one of the most recognizable faces in the game today. But is De La Cruz really the Cincinnati Reds best player?
If you were to ask this question about a month ago, the answer would be resounding, yes. The Reds' shortstop seemed to hit his stride midway through the month of June and rode that wave until the All-Star break.
From June 1 through July 13, De La Cruz was hitting .336/.415/.586 with an impressive 11.9% walk rate, a meager 18.2% strikeout rate, and a 167 wRC+.