Elly De La Cruz just made the Reds rethink their entire rehab plan

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz began a rehab assignment with the Louisville Bats on Friday night at Gwinnett. He went 2-for-2 with a home run, two RBI, and walk. De La Cruz was lifted in the bottom of the sixth inning for defensive replacement, Garrett Hampson.

The plan was always for De La Cruz to spend three games with the Bats this weekend and then rejoin the Reds at home for their upcoming series against the Milwaukee Brewers. But after watching Cincinnati drop the series opener to the New York Yankees in embarrassing fashion, perhaps Nick Krall and the Reds' braintrust will rethink their strategy.

Will the Reds abandon their original plan for Elly De La Cruz?

De La Cruz has been on the injured list since June 1 with a hamstring stain. He came up lame during a game against the Atlanta Braves on May 31 and the initial diagnosis presumed he'd be out of action for up to a month.

The Reds' record during De La Cruz's absence has been abysmal. Cincinnati has gone 5-11 without their superstar shortstop in the lineup and have fallen 10½ games back of the division-leading Brewers in the NL Central. The Reds are also four games back of the final spot in the NL Wild Card race.

On Friday night in the Bronx against Yankees' ace Cam Schlittler, the Reds struck out 17 times went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position, and left six men on base. This has been a theme for the Reds while De La Cruz has been on the mend, and if goes on much long, the season may be all but lost.

Surprisingly, the only player who's been hitting well during De La Cruz's absence has been his replacement. Matt McLain has taken over at shortstop during De La Cruz's time on the IL and has gone 11-for-46, drawn nine walks, and smacked three home runs. He's the only Reds' regular since June with an OPS over .800.

It seems unlikely that the Reds' leadership will rush De La Cruz back to the active roster simply because of the team's win-loss record. But the more losses that pile up, the more likely it becomes that Cincinnati will be sellers, not buyers, at the MLB trade deadline.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow