It took Elly De La Cruz six days in the big leagues to produce a six-game hitting streak. And a 458-foot home run. And, by the way, five walks and three stolen bases.
By the time he played 15 games, he owned the first cycle in 34 years for the Cincinnati Reds, had a 1.074 OPS, had locked up the National League Player of the Week award — and the Reds had gone from third place, 5 1/ 2 games out, into first place on a 12-game winning streak that matched the longest in franchise history since 1900.
Would anybody be shocked if this guy made the All-Star team?
“I would not,” Reds manager David Bell said.
That qualifies as an endorsement shouted from the mountaintops for the reserved-by-nature Bell, who has continually resisted talking about which of his players deserve All-Star recognition.
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“To me an All-Star comes in a lot of different forms, and one of those is what a player does to help his team win,” Bell said. “He’s at the top of that list.
Judge him on the impact he has made
“He hasn’t been here very long, but he’s made a big impact in the time that he’s been here. He’s definitely made us better.”
You think those active volcanoes around Seattle are explosive?
Just imagine a De La Cruz swing connecting with a Gerrit Cole fastball on July 11 off the National League All-Star bench at T-Mobile Park.
What’s the Puget Sound?
Exactly.
“Listen, it’s a new era. It’s a new day and age,” said retired two-time Reds All-Star Todd Frazier, who sat in as a broadcaster during the Reds recent series in Baltimore.
“You want excitement? You want a thrill? You want a guy that everybody’s talking about? Put him on there.”
Because the fan ballots are electronic, candidates from each team can be submitted right up to the time voting starts, unlike as recently as 2014 — the last year paper ballots were used and teams submitted their starters at each position at the start of the season.
That’s why Reds rookie Matt McLain, who debuted May 15, was on this year’s ballot. He wound up fourth among NL shortstops — ahead of $477 million worth of luminaries in Trea Turner and Dansby Swanson.
De La Cruz got to the majors too late to make even the electronic ballot.
Player making All-Star team not on ballot possible
But it wouldn’t be unprecedented for a rookie who debuted too late to make the ballot to be selected. Mike Trout and Bryce Harper both debuted for their teams on April 28 in 2012, and both made their All-Star teams.
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Francisco Liriano of the Twins was a nondescript rookie reliever in 2006 until injuries forced him into the rotation May 19 — and then reeled off a 9-1 run with a 1.36 ERA in 10 starts to earn an 11th-hour selection as an injury replacement.
Even New York Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio made the All-Star roster as a rookie after debuting on May 3, 1936.
Not that De La Cruz seemed to know the reference, offering only a quizzical look at the mention of DiMaggio.
“It’s not like back in the day where you had that certain criteria,” Frazier said. “Get everybody to watch the game and the excitement. This is the new guy coming up. Put him in for an at-bat.”
And while a June 6 debut date is historically late in the game for such things, stranger things have happened involving some of the great performers in this game — and others.
Willie McCovey won the 1959 NL Rookie of the Year award despite debuting on July 30 and playing just 52 games. Rick Sutcliffe was traded from Cleveland to the Chicago Cubs in June of 1984 — and won the NL Cy Young award with just 20 NL starts.
And in the NHL, Philadelphia Flyers legend Pelle Lindbergh was voted into the 1985-86 starting lineup for the All-Star game despite having died in a car accident 14 games into the season.
De La Cruz not concerning himself with All-Star Game
De La Cruz said he’s not spending any time thinking about All-Star stuff or even how it would work. But “It would be cool,” he said.
The big issue would seem how to persuade the people making those decisions that a player who might have barely 30 games in the big leagues by then should be in Seattle.
“I don’t think I’d have to persuade them,” teammate Spencer Steer said. “I’d just tell them to watch our games and you would understand why he should be in the All-Star game.
“He’s one of the most exciting players in baseball, so why wouldn’t you want him there?”
Teammate Will Benson said he wouldn’t be shocked if either De La Cruz or Matt McLain were selected.
“I think they deserve it,” he said. “They’ve done remarkable things.
“Obviously, the All-Star show is a show for the stars of the league,” he added, “and I think these guys have shown they’re star quality.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How Cincinnati Reds’ Elly De La Cruz might sprint into All-Star game