Eli De La Cruz (Cincinnati Reds) hit a home run two games into his major league debut.

De la Cruz went 2-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, two RBIs, two runs scored and a triple in the Reds’ 2023 Major League Baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Aug. 8 at Crate American Ballpark in Cincinnati, Ohio.

De la Cruz is ranked as the No. 4 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline. He made a splash in his debut on July 7 when he hit a fastball up to 112 mph (about 180 km/h).

De la Cruz’s momentum carried over into the next day’s game. Trailing 0-2 in the first inning, De La Cruz stepped to the plate with two runners on base. He swung at a two-seam fastball from Noah Syndergaard, sending it over the right field fence. He knew it was a home run the moment he hit it and did a simple bat flip to round the bases. His fastball clocked in at 114.8 mph (about 185 km/h).

According to MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball, De La Cruz’s home run was the second hardest hit since the introduction of Statcast technology in 2015.

After the game, De La Cruz said, “Our team is in a positive mood. There’s a vibe that we’re going to the World Series.” As for the home run, he said, “The moment I hit it, I knew it went over.”

De la Cruz’s athleticism was on full display in his second at-bat. Trailing 6-3 in the bottom of the third inning, De La Cruz crushed a Syndergaard curveball to right-center field. De La Cruz quickly rounded second base and stole third. “De la Cruz went from home to third base in 10.83 seconds, the fastest time in the majors this season,” MLB.com reported.

“I always think about triples,” De La Cruz said. Every time I go between the bases, I’m always trying to get to third base,” he said.

In his first two games, De La Cruz is batting .429 with a .286 OPS, one home run, two doubles, three RBIs, two triples and three walks. The three hits have been doubles, triples, and home runs. The “Super Rookie” de la Cruz is turning heads with his early season performance. 메이저사이트