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It was a matchup of power against power in the Cincinnati Reds’ spring training camp when hard-throwing right-hander Hunter Greene squared off against uber-talented shortstop Elly De La Cruz in live batting practice.
Greene won the battle. However, his luxury SUV lost the war on February 20 in Goodyear, Arizona.
De La Cruz fouled the first pitch he saw from Greene into the players’ parking lot. The ball ended up smashing the left rear window of the SUV, a green Mercedes-Maybach GLS with a price tag of up to $200,000, according to USA Today.
Greene wound up striking out De La Cruz on six pitches. However, an intrasquad strikeout won’t cover the cost of a new window.
So, who will pay for that window?
“You’re paying for it,” Greene told Cruz, according to CLNS Media’s Mike Petraglia. To which De La Cruz replied, “You make more than me.”
Greene, 24, will make $3.3 million in 2024 after signing a six-year, $53 million contract extension in 2023. De La Cruz, who is entering his second full year in the majors, will likely make just over the MLB minimum salary of $740,000 because he is not yet eligible for salary arbitration.
Later, the two young Reds posed for a photo in front of the smashed window.
“That’ll teach you to park in the first spot,” said Reds president Nick Krall, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Gordon Wittenmyer.
Hunter Greene’s Potential Is Potential
Both young players are part of the reason the Reds believe they can reach the postseason this year for the first time in a full season since 2013. After losing 100 games in 2022, the Reds just missed the playoffs last season when they went 82-80 and finished two games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final National League wild card.
The Reds have had high hopes for Greene since selecting him with the second overall pick in the 2017 amateur draft from Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, California.
Greene made his MLB debut in 2022 and has struggled to get big-league hitters out. He has a 9-20 record in 46 career starts with a 4.62 ERA.
However, Greene’s ability to be overpowering at times is evident as he has 316 strikeouts in 237 2/3 innings. He pitched 7 1/3 no-hit innings as a rookie against the Pirates but wound up taking the loss as five walks led to Pittsburgh scoring one run.
One statistical marker provides hope that Greene’s fortunes could turn this season. His 4.25 FIP (fielding independent pitching) last year was more than a half run lower than his ERA, indicating Greene pitched in his share of bad luck.
Elly De La Cruz Had Memorable Start
De La Cruz had a blistering start to his major-league career last season after he debuted on June 6. The Dominican Republic native batted .328/.366/.533 with four home runs and 16 RBIs through his first 29 games.
It seemed De La Cruz highlights were splashed all over social media every night. One of his most impressive feats came in his second game when he blasted his first home run, a 458-foot drive off the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Noah Syndergaard with a 114.2-mph exit velocity and a 35-degree launch angle.
However, pitchers eventually adjusted to De La Cruz and found holes in the 6-foot-6 right-handed hitter’s swing. In De La Cruz’s last 69 games, he batted .192/.271/.353 and struck out 106 times in 296 plate appearances.
Still, he’s a potential breakout candidate in 2024. De La Cruz topped The Athletic’s list of players “who are ready to explode.”
“His tools are scary and he has a Hall of Fame ceiling,” Jim Bowden wrote on February 12. “De La Cruz stole 35 bases last year but is capable of 50 this year. He hit 13 home runs last year and I expect around 25 this year.”
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