Elly De La Cruz should be driving force behind Reds trade, offseason plans

The Cincinnati Reds have a true superstar on their hands in Elly De La Cruz. The young shortstop has completely captivated the game and the city of Cincinnati with his electric play, and he's only been in the big leagues for just over a year.

De La Cruz leads the MLB in stolen bases as of the morning of July 3 (40), but his speed goes beyond just that stat. He impacts the game with his speed anytime he's on base or in the field. He's shown the ability to play every day, which he consistently cites as his biggest goal right now while being the best player on the Reds.

There may not be a player on the team or even in the league that enjoys baseball as much as the 22-year-old superstar does. He can almost always be seen with a smile on his face, supporting his teammates and his team, even if he struggled that day.

But Cincinnati can't afford to sell this year and push back competing to next season. That's a wasted year of De La Cruz.

Reds GM Nick Krall needs to commit to win while he has Elly De La Cruz in the Queen City

De La Cruz is a once-in-a-lifetime player. There is a very slim chance that we see another player that can do the things that he does in our lifetimes. Not only that, but his impact has completely changed the way the Reds fans support the team.

"Elly Bobblehead night" brought over 42,000 fans to Great American Ballpark on a random Wednesday night in June. It was the first time (not including opening day) that GABP sold more tickets on a weekday in its history. Elly moves the needle.

General manager Nick Krall needs to support him with a team that can push the Reds to the postseason. Cincinnati can't afford to waste any season in which De La Cruz is a Red, because his contract will be up before you know it and at that point, Scott Boras will look for the highest bidder to sign him.

While De La Cruz is under team control through the 2029 season, there are no promises that he will be back in the Queen City in 2030. Each year the Reds spend selling and continuing to rebuild, they're wasting a season of a generational superstar.

So what should Cincinnati do? Buy. But be conservative in their buying. Don't go out and deplete the farm for rental players like the Los Angeles Dodgers, Braves and other massive superteams will do. Go make trades for the players with a few years of team control. If they want to make a splash, which is doubtful, make a trade for one of the great players that come with team control. Say, Luis Robert, Garrett Crochet, or Jesus Luzardo.

But what Cincinnati can't do is think that 2024 is a waste just because they've battled the injury bug and struggled at times. They have a solid three headed monster in their pitching rotation and a bullpen that's been great as of late. Oh, and they have the most electric player in the game roaming at shortstop.

Make the trades to acquire a controllable starting pitching and an additional outfielder or two. Maybe add a bullpen arm or two to add some depth. But Cincinnati can't afford to dump off their players to try to continue adding prospects. Each year with De La Cruz is too valuable to continue rebuilding.