Brandon Brown
Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz is on his way to stardom after being a sensation last season as a rookie. So far this season, he is hitting .262/.367/.510 (146 OPS+) with seven doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 21 RBI, 32 runs and 1.9 WAR in 41 games.
Oh, and he has 25 stolen bases in 29 attempts. Yes, stolen bases are back this season due in part to rules implemented ahead of the 2023 season, but no one else in the majors has more than 17 steals. Only six players are over 11. De La Cruz is running laps around the field.
I’m sure many still roll their eyes at the “pace” numbers at the start of the season, but we’re about a quarter of the way through the season. It’s not like it’s April 10th. De La Cruz is on pace to collect around 99 sacks this season (98.78 on Tuesday).
In the modern era (1900 to present), there have only been 14 individual seasons with at least 90 steals. All but four came in the 1980s; Lou Brock, Ty Cobb and Maury Willis, twice, did it before the ’80s and we haven’t seen one since (who else?) Rickey Henderson stole 93 in 1988.
The century mark is the big number, right? We haven’t seen a player get there since Vince Coleman stole 109 bases in 1987. That’s only happened eight times in the modern era.
|
Player |
Team |
Season |
Stolen bases |
|
Rickey Henderson |
As |
1982 |
130 |
|
Lou Brock |
1974 |
118 |
|
|
Vincent Coleman |
Cardinals |
1985 |
110 |
|
Vincent Coleman |
Cardinals |
1987 |
109 |
|
Rickey Henderson |
As |
1983 |
108 |
|
Vincent Coleman |
Cardinals |
1986 |
107 |
|
Maury Wills |
Dodger |
1962 |
104 |
|
Rickey Henderson |
As |
1980 |
100 |
Only four players in modern MLB history has stolen 100 bases in one season, and six of the eight seasons in which a player got there came in such a condensed period of time. Seeing one now would be incredible.
De La Cruz is also in a good position to continue accumulating his bags. First, the climate for stolen bases was greatly improved by rule changes — including slightly larger bases — before last season. Second, he plays for a team that has struggled to score runs, which gives more incentive to let him loose on the bases. His .367 on-base percentage is very good and now that he’s at second after starting the season in six holes, he’ll get plenty of plate appearances. And, of course, there’s the high success rate. Above 86%, he is stealing bases with a higher success rate than Henderson in his three 100-steal seasons.
Finally, and this is the most fun part: De La Cruz manages to accumulate robberies in a short time. He already has seven multi-steal games this season and has stolen three bases twice (April 19 and 24). Last week, he had three straight games with two stolen bases.
The Reds’ single-season record for stolen bases in the modern era is held by Bob Bescher, who stole 81 in 1911, while Eric Davis stole 80 in 1986. As long as De La Cruz can avoid injury (please, please, avoid injury) ), setting the club record should be child’s play. Let’s keep our eyes on the century mark.
