Elly De La Cruz Is Back. The Reds Needed This One.

Cincinnati gets its spark plug back. Elly De La Cruz will be activated Tuesday for the second game of the series against the Milwaukee Brewers, manager Terry Francona confirmed Monday. The 24-year-old shortstop has been sidelined since June 18 with a hamstring injury, and the Reds have missed him badly.

Francona told reporters that De La Cruz texted him after Saturday’s win over the Yankees, the one where Cincinnati took two of three from New York, and said he was ready. The manager laughed it off at first, but the message was clear: the kid wants to play.

“He wanted to come back today,” Francona said, via MLB.com. “I think he was joking, but it was kind of cool. I got a text after the game, and it goes, ‘I’ll be there tomorrow.’”

De La Cruz doesn’t miss much time. He played 160 games in 2023 and 162 last season. Being out for 18 days probably felt like an eternity. The Reds put him on the 10-day IL retroactive to June 19, so he’ll have missed 19 games by the time he steps back on the field Tuesday night.

What the Reds Are Getting Back

Through 58 games this season, De La Cruz is hitting .280 with 12 home runs and 37 RBIs. That’s not eye-popping for a guy with his tools, but the numbers don’t tell the whole story. He changes the game just by standing on first base. His speed forces infielders to rush. His arm from shortstop makes runners think twice.

The Reds enter Monday’s game against Milwaukee at 37-39, last place in the NL Central. That’s not where they expected to be. They’ve dealt with injuries to a handful of key guys, and De La Cruz was the biggest absence. Getting him back doesn’t fix everything, but it sure helps.

Cincinnati’s offense has been inconsistent without him. The lineup loses its energy when he’s not in it, and that’s not something you can measure in a box score. Francona knows it. The front office knows it. The fans definitely know it.

De La Cruz will be in the lineup Tuesday, probably near the top of the order. The Brewers have been on a roll, but the Reds have to feel better about their chances with No. 44 back in the middle of everything.