Reds star Elly De La Cruz made a fool out of an opposing base coach with his ridiculous throw against the Giants on Thursday.
Cincinnati Reds rookie shortstop Elly De La Cruz never fails to impress. This time, it was De La Cruz's defensive talents on display in Thursday's game against the San Francisco Giants.
In front of wide-eyed fans at Great American Ball Park, De La Cruz uncorked a 99.8 mph throw to home that nailed Giants runner Wilmer Flores at the plate in the third inning. He ended up breaking his own record for the fastest-tracked assist by an infielder in the Statcast era (he previously set the record with a 97.9 mph laser to first base this past Sunday).
De La Cruz now has four 95-plus mph infield assists — as many as Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. — and it only took him half an MLB season.
The Reds' fast-rising star is a clear winner here. The loser? The overly optimistic Giants base coach who decided to wave Flores around third base to try to score.
Cincinnati would go on to beat San Francisco 5-1, moving to 52-46 this season.
Reds star Elly De La Cruz breaks own record with 99.8 mph zinger assist
In the highlight video, De La Cruz can be seen calmly collecting the ball from Will Benson in the outfield before firing a scorching-hot zinger to catcher Luke Maile. Baseball purists will point out that De La Cruz's relay throw was actually a little off target — it veered toward the first-base line a couple feet off the plate, and Maile had to shift to the right to make the catch and then quickly tag Flores out.
Flores also looked like he was running through quicksand, having potentially sustained a minor injury in the previous play.
The nitpicky details aside, the fact that De La Cruz broke his own record within the week is insane. Thursday's game was a chance for him to showcase his fielding skills, but he's more well-known for his power at the plate, slashing .280/.319/.447 with four homers and 16 RBIs in his first major league season.
Earlier in the game, De La Cruz was caught trying to steal second base and got tagged out from a throw by Giants catcher Patrick Bailey, who showed off his own cannon of an arm. So there is something the Reds superstar can't do. Good to know.