CHICAGO -- Elly De La Cruz received terrible news that his older sister had passed away on Saturday. Insisting on playing Sunday's game vs. the Cubs, the Reds shortstop then went out and did something special in her memory.
De La Cruz notched two hits, including a two-run home run, and a walk in Cincinnati's 7-3 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sunday afternoon.
Genelis De La Cruz Sanchez died after an extended period of health issues, according to reports out of the family's home nation, the Dominican Republic.
“We just told him we will support whatever he needs to do. He wants to play today and then we’ll go from there," Reds manager Terry Francona said before the game.
De La Cruz did not speak to the media pregame or postgame and preferred to maintain privacy. Once he stepped onto the field, "RIP Manita" could be seen written on the back of his spikes in tribute to Genelis. Manita is Spanish slang for a sister.
On De La Cruz's Reds cap, there was writing in Spanish followed by, "RIP Genelis."
“It’s hard. We care so much about playing the game and winning. But in a hurry, you’re reminded of what’s really important," Francona said after the game. "I think everybody kind of kept their head on a swivel with him today just trying to take care of him.”
Batting in the top of the first inning, De La Cruz used his timeout before the at-bat started to collect himself before stepping into the batter's box. On a 0-2 pitch from Cubs starter Jameson Taillon, De La Cruz lined a single into right field.
Cincinnati was trailing, 5-0, in the sixth inning with two outs when De La Cruz drove a 3-2 fastball from Taillon for his two-run home run that landed just inside the right-field foul pole. According to Statcast, the ball left his bat at 117.4 mph.
At 23 years and 141 days old, De La Cruz became the fifth-youngest player in Reds franchise history since 1900 to hit the 50th home run of his career. It also gave him a team-high 12 for the season.
As he approached home plate after rounding the bases, De La Cruz pointed to the sky. Upon touching the plate, he made the heart symbol with his hands.
The special moment was delayed from becoming official when the Cubs asked for a crew chief review to determine if the ball had hooked foul. But the original call was confirmed after the replays.
"I missed my spot. So, that hurts, but you can take it. Wind blowing in at Wrigley," Taillon said. "He hit it like 150 million miles per hour through the wind, so it didn’t matter. I thought it was a homer off the bat. I was throwing my warm-up pitches there, as they were reviewing, out of the windup."
In the ninth inning, De La Cruz drew a one-out walk and scored. While there is no word on whether he will go on a bereavement leave, it was remarkable that he could play at a high level while carrying a heavy heart for his late sister.
"Man, that's tough," Sunday's starting pitcher Nick Martinez said. "He’s one of our guys.”
“He takes so much pride in being available," Francona said. "Carlos Santana in Cleveland was very similar. And for a kid that that’s young, that’s an admirable trait.”
Teammate and good friend Matt McLain wanted to say as little as possible about De La Cruz to maintain his privacy about the situation. But when asked about his performance, McLain stated it succinctly.
“It was very impressive," he said.