Getty Image / Joe Robbins
Elly De La Cruz hasn’t been playing in the majors for very long.
He just made his debut for the Cincinnati Reds earlier this week.
That hasn’t stopped him from already generating a ton of hype.
Just 5 games into his MLB career, De La Cruz has already racked up 6 hits, including a triple and his first career home run.
With only those four games under his belt, he is already seen as the favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award this season.
Now it looks like he is already prepared to add a different title to his list of accolades.
After the Cincinnati Reds’ win over the St Louis Cardinals today, De La Cruz made a bold claim about his speed.
According to The Athletic’s C Trent Rosencrans, De La Cruz said that he is the fastest man in the world.
Elly De La Cruz (in English): “I am the fastest man in the world”
— C. Trent Rosecrans (@ctrent) June 10, 2023
Elly De La Cruz took a couple of opportunities to show off just how fast he is during the win today.
In the top of the 5th inning, De La Cruz stole second base after drawing a leadoff walk for the Cincinnati Reds.
In the 7th, he scored from first on a 2-run double while nearly catching the runner in front of him after blowing through a stop sign from his 3rd base coach as he took off for home plate.
The promising rookie has already been clocked as one of the fastest players in the league despite only having 5 games’ worth of chances to show off his speed.
With Elly De La Cruz’s combination of size, speed, and skill, he is certainly one of the most interesting prospects in the MLB to watch right now, but we may need to see him test his speed against some other individuals who can claim to be the fastest in their sports before he is handed this title.