‘It’s like Satchel Paige’: Elly De La Cruz also can set records with his golden arm

Cincinnati Reds reliever Derek Law is a 32-year-old who has spent his entire professional career working on throwing the ball harder. Law is a baseball journeyman, and he has found a breakthrough during a strong 2023 season after increasing his average fastball velocity to 95.3 mph.

To get to this point, it took years of taxing workouts and throwing programs tailored specifically for him. He gritted out tough seasons, taught himself new pitches and survived getting designated for assignment by five teams. The entire time, Law was looking for a way to throw just a little harder.

Then on Sunday, Law watched Reds third baseman Elly De La Cruz make an effortless 97.9 mph throw to get the out at first.

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“All of us pitchers work our tails off just for one extra tick in velocity,” Law said. “And this guy goes out there and does that so casually. I’ve never actually seen the raw tools that Elly has. And he has so many of them. Obviously, he has power and speed. Then he goes out and makes that throw, and it’s like, this guy can literally do everything. What is the ceiling for him? This guy could be Barry Bonds if he wants to.”

De La Cruz’s throw was the fastest-tracked infield assist since Statcast began tracking that data in 2015. In Triple-A earlier this season, De La Cruz made a 99.2 throw in the infield. Against the San Francisco Giants on Monday, De La Cruz made a 95.9 mph throw on a ground ball to him at third base.

The infielder can throw harder than everyone on the Reds’ roster except for Hunter Greene and Graham Ashcraft.

“For me, (arm strength) has always been there,” De La Cruz said via interpreter Jorge Merlos. “I don’t have to work like pitchers do and keep constantly working on it. I just know that it’s always been there and that I can use it.”

De La Cruz has never worked on his velocity. Just like he naturally developed into the fastest man in baseball, De La Cruz has become the hardest-throwing infielder in baseball.

On his record-setting infield assist, De La Cruz didn’t even realize how hard he threw the ball.

“I knew that it was thrown hard,” De La Cruz said. “I thought maybe it was 93 or 94. But then I realized it was 97. It was like, ‘Oh, alright.’”

The pitchers on the Reds had a good reason to feel jealous. Their entire schedules are built around adding to their velocity and maintaining it. The Reds’ coaching staff and front office have studied this topic like a science. They’re always looking for the next trend in pitching development that could help their pitchers throw with just a little more velocity.

Reds reliever Fernando Cruz said his routine is the key to his success. Hours before games, he runs sprints to warm up. Then he goes through a series of stretches. He goes through a set of resistance band exercises. Then he plays catch and works on his pitches. Then he throws long toss. Before the game starts, he has a set schedule of mobility and agility drills.

Fernando Cruz still only throws a 93.7 mph fastball.

“Elly doesn't have a routine to throw hard. He just has the talent and the ability to do it,” Cruz said. “He has impressive abilities in everything he does. Nothing surprises me with him, even stuff like that. It’s a gift from God.”

De La Cruz has the potential to be one of the best position players in baseball, so Reds pitching coach Derek Johnson knows that he’ll never see the rookie on the mound. Johnson has still thought about what it’d be like to coach him.

During Johnson’s career, he has worked with a few position players who converted to become pitchers. The first thing that he worked on with those pitchers is reigning in their mechanics and showing them a cookie-cutter delivery. Usually, Johnson wants to show these new pitchers an approach that can help them keep everything simple.

Johnson said he wouldn’t try that approach with De La Cruz. Since De La Cruz is so fluid, athletic and strong, Johnson would encourage De La Cruz to use whatever mechanics he felt most comfortable with.

“In my mind, Elly would be better off as a guy who kept things more natural and free,” Johnson said. “It’s pretty special. I’d hate to take that away from him. It’s like Satchel Paige. He’s tall, lanky, long arm.

“Most of us have to work at being good. He does, too. But he has a gift. He’s enabling it. That’s a great thing. It’d be nice to be special.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds infielder Elly De La Cruz has a record-setting arm