Cincinnati shortstop Ellie de la Cruz made history by stealing third base in the fifth inning of the Reds’ road game against the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.
The stolen base was de la Cruz’s 60th of the season, making him just the fifth player since 1901 to steal at least 60 bases and hit at least 20 home runs in a season. De la Cruz has hit 21 home runs in his career.
The 22-year-old de la Cruz achieved this milestone by stealing third base in the fifth inning, then scoring the tying run later.
He joins two other former Reds stars on the list: Joe Morgan (26 home runs and 67 stolen bases in 1973 and 27 home runs and 60 stolen bases in 1976) and Eric Davis (27 home runs and 80 stolen bases in 1986).
Rickey Henderson accomplished the feat three times: 24 and 80 home runs with the 1985 New York Yankees, 28 and 87 home runs with the 1986 Yankees, and 28 and 65 home runs with the 1990 Oakland Athletics.
The most recent player to make the list ahead of De La Cruz was Atlanta Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr., who hit 41 home runs and stole 73 bases last year.
–Field Level Media
