Elly De La Cruz’s scorching 23‑game on‑base run rewrites the record books

It’s the kind of stretch that makes you stop and stare. Cincinnati’s All‑Star shortstop Elly De La Cruz has been on the bases for 23 straight games, compiling a stat line that looks almost other‑worldly: 21 singles, 10 doubles, eight homers, 23 runs, 10 walks and four stolen bases.

Only one other player in Major League history has ever put together those exact totals in the same number of games – the legendary Lou Gehrig, back in June of 1930. The comparison feels almost sacrilegious, yet the numbers line up, point for point.

De La Cruz is having the best season of his four‑year career. He’s smashed personal bests in just about every offensive category: 28 home runs, a .885 OPS and a slash line that tops his previous years. Since the streak kicked off on August 22, his wRC+ has ballooned to an astronomical 242, meaning he’s producing runs at more than double the league average.

Even his advanced metrics are leading the pack. A 2.4 fWAR over that span puts him ahead of every other player in the majors, including MVP candidate Pete Crow‑Armstrong. And, perhaps oddly satisfying for Reds fans, five of those eight homers came against the Los Angeles Dodgers, punctuated by big blows off the mounds of Tarik Skubal and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

But baseball is a team sport, and while De La Cruz is turning heads, the Reds as a whole are drifting in the wrong direction. A 71‑81 record has already locked them out of the postseason, leaving them at the bottom of the NL Central – a division that, despite its reputation as the league’s toughest, has been dominated by the 95‑win Milwaukee Brewers.

Last season the Reds slipped into the wild‑card, only to be swept by the Dodgers. This year, the story is different: a dazzling individual performance eclipsed by a collective disappointment. Still, there are silver linings. Young hitters like Sal Stewart and unexpected contributors such as JJ Bleday have shown flashes of brilliance that could be the foundation for a resurgence in 2027.

For now, Elly De La Cruz’s hot streak will be the headline that baseball fans remember, a modern‑day echo of Gehrig’s greatness, even as the Reds stare down a rebuilding road.