Elly De La Cruz is fixing his biggest flaw while the rest of the Reds' bats fall flat

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz is already a superstar, but to ascend to the highest echelon of the game's truly elite, there have been a few areas of his game that he has needed to clean up. One of the biggest has been his performance against left-handed pitching.

For his career, the 24-year-old has hit just .224/.281/.353 against southpaws, which is a performance that stands in stark contrast to the .271/.351/.493 line he owns against right-handers. That discrepancy has greatly diminished his value as a switch-hitter.

It's still early, but so far in 2026, the tide seems to be turning. De La Cruz is hitting a whopping .318/.348/.909 with four of his five homers coming against lefties.

Overall, De La Cruz is hitting .281/.361/.563, adding five steals to his five homers. It's the kind of start that you could see resulting in an MVP season, yet he hasn't gotten the protection or support that fans thought he'd receive.

Through 17 games, Cincinnati has scored 56 runs, which is just two spots from the bottom of the league. The club has a combined .205/.298/.325 line. The offense has been De La Cruz and Sal Stewart, and almost nothing else.

Reds' struggles are wasting red-hot starts from Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart

Stewart has been a revelation. To date, there are only three hitters who rank in the 85th percentile in barrel percentage, strikeout percentage, and walk percentage — Yordan Alvarez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Stewart. Those gaudy underlying metrics have led the rookie to a sparkling .309/.435/.600 line with four homers.

Stewart's power and discipline have him in the same conversation as two of the top sluggers in the game, and De La Cruz is the first shortstop since 1900 to record at least five homers and five stolen bases over his first 16 games. But the Reds have the same problem that haunted them last year. They can't consistently score runs.

Outside of De La Cruz and Stewart, there isn't a single Reds' hitter with a wRC+ of 100 or better. The leader of the pack is Nathaniel Lowe with a mark of 92. The two biggest disappointments so far have been Eugenio Suarez, who is undergoing a power outage with a .345 slugging percentage, and Matt McLain, who was the hottest hitter in the sport during the spring. He hasn't carried any of that momentum over to the regular season with a .217/.329/.267 slash line.

Much of the rest of the lineup has been comprised of platoons that have not worked out thus far. The worst offender, Noelvi Marte, has already been sent down. Others might join him in Louisville, but in the meantime, Cincinnati will hope that Rece Hinds can give them a jolt.

The good news is that it's still early, though; that excuse is beginning to wear thin. By May 1, we can stop with the small sample size disclaimers and begin acknowledging proven trends. Until then, the lineup has the opportunity to get it together. If they do, the Reds will be true contenders. If they don't, they could waste potentially special seasons from De La Cruz and Stewart, who could prove to be MVP and Rookie of the Year candidates, respectively.

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