The 2026 season could be the year that Elly De La Cruz puts everything together. A Statcast darling with some of the best raw tools in the sport, the Cincinnati Reds shortstop is poised for a breakout in all facets of the game that could make him a perennial MVP candidate.
The Athletic‘s Ken Rosenthal published a feature on De La Cruz, who seeks to become one of the best players in the sport. Much of the discourse on the 24-year-old has been more about his athletic feats, more so than his consistency as a player.
It’s easy to fall into the trap of chasing those Statcast metrics. De La Cruz has elite speed and arguably the best throwing arm of any infielder in baseball. He’s blasted balls up to 119 MPH in his career, a feat not many players in today’s league can even dream of doing. With the type of talent on the field, Reds games should be appointment television.
Especially when De La Cruz either steps in the box, is on the bases, or a ball is hit in his general direction. Simply because he’s capable of achieving feats no one has ever seen before.
Elly De La Cruz’s 2026 Breakout Changes MVP Conversation
The switch-hitter is off to an amazing start to 2026, slashing .295/.356/.520 with 10 home runs and a 143 wRC+ entering play on May 14.
De La Cruz has embraced patience at the plate, with a career-low chase rate of 23.8%. That puts him in better count leverage, resulting in louder contact. His 52.1% hard-hit rate and 14.5% barrel rate are career-highs by a significant margin.
The better contact is reflected in his expected metrics. De La Cruz currently sports a .283 xBA, .512 xSLG, and .373 xwOBA, which rank in the 85th percentile or higher. He’s become one of the game’s most prolific hitters as a result.
In addition to an improvement at the plate, De La Cruz is making significant strides defensively. Statcast credits with +5 Outs Above Average defensively at shortstop. That ranks ninth overall and third among MLB shortstops.
All of the total contributions have added up to 2.2 fWAR, putting him on pace for a career-high 8.2 WAR. His previous best came in 2024, putting up 6.6 fWAR and finishing eighth in the National League MVP race.
It will be tough for De La Cruz to pry the MVP award from Shohei Ohtani, since the Dodgers‘ superstar pitches and hits. But his new level of play puts him in the conversation for not only the MVP, but also for the best shortstop in MLB. Bobby Witt Jr. currently holds that distinction, but that answer could change in just a couple of years.
Reds Praise Elly De La Cruz’s Maturation
Rosenthal reports that people in the Reds organization are raving about De La Cruz’s transformation into one of MLB’s elite players. Not with the physical gifts and athletic marvels, but rather with smaller and more consistent habits. The type of habits that turn an elite talent into a Hall of Famer.
“He’s maturing,” Reds manager Terry Francona said on the “Starkville” podcast. “It’s not that he was immature, but when you start to get 1,000-1,200 at-bats, good players start to get better, start to figure it out. The game slows down a little bit.”
Cincinnati added key veterans in the offseason, bringing in Nathaniel Lowe and Eugenio Suarez to mentor a young club. The Reds made the postseason for the first time in five seasons and are hoping to build off that success. De La Cruz certainly has embraced that standard in his own play.
“It was always like the highlight type plays,” Lowe told Rosenthal. “But the more I’m around him now, he understands the consistency is what’s going to make him great.”
In his second stint with the Reds, Suarez brought back the infield competition he had with Joey Votto and Zack Cozart. Whenever an infielder misplays a ground ball or makes a poor throw, they have to pay the other infielders each $20. Each mistake will cost $100.
“I want him to be focused, not miss one,” said Suarez. “Compete in practice, do that in the game.”
With De La Cruz embracing the habits necessary to grow as a player, there might not be a ceiling to what he’s capable of on a baseball field. And if he can stay healthy, his career could very well end in Cooperstown.
Reds’ Elly De La Cruz Embracing New Approach Fuels MVP-Caliber Start