Elly De La Cruz DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz has a new batting stance heading into the 2025 season. De La Cruz's new stance is more open, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer's Charlie Goldsmith, while he also stands a bit taller. The stance is a more "controlled aggression" that is aimed at cutting down his strikeouts moving forward. The 23-year-old is already one of the most exciting young players in baseball, but he led the league with 218 strikeouts in 2024. In addition to leading MLB in K's, he led the league in errors (29), times caught stealing (16) and non-stealing outs on the bases (15), so he still has plenty to work on. De La Cruz had 25 home runs and a league-high 67 stolen bases as well, and if he can cut down on his strikeouts in 2025, he'll easily pay off his price as a top-five overall fantasy selection on draft day this spring.

Cincinnati Reds All-Star shortstop Elly De La Cruz is looking to reduce his strikeouts in 2025 with the help of new hitting coach Chris Valaika. At only 23 years old, De La Cruz is already one of the best players in baseball after leading MLB with 67 stolen bases in 2024 and leading the Reds with 25 home runs, 36 doubles and 10 triples in 160 games. However, he also led all of baseball in strikeouts (218), errors (29), times caught stealing (16) and non-stealing outs on the bases (15). The positives for De La Cruz outweighed the negatives, though, and he finished as the No. 5 fantasy hitter in rotisserie formats last year. With a ceiling as high as any in the big leagues because of his five-tool profile, De La Cruz should be considered a top-five fantasy selection in 2025 drafts, especially if he's able to make more contact at the plate in his second full season.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz showcased his game-breaking speed on Sunday, going 1-for-5 with a triple and two stolen bases in a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs. De La Cruz finishes the season with 67 stolen bases, easily good enough for first in the majors. Interestingly enough, though, Elly only stole 10 bags in August and September combined, which equates to a 30-steal pace. That's not bad at all, but it's also not what fantasy managers would expect from the speedster. It was still a great season for the 22-year-old, who showed major improvements at the dish and contributed some power to go along with the speed. He will be a top-20 pick in most drafts next year and could rocket into the top 10 for those chasing upside.