Can Reds' Elly De La Cruz maintain his under-the-radar 50-50 pace?

Can Reds' Elly De La Cruz maintain his under-the-radar 50-50 pace? originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

A two-time MLB All-Star before the age of 24, Cincinnati Reds center fielder Elly De La Cruz continues to be overlooked.

After recovering from a lower-body injury last season, De La Cruz remains healthy and opened the regular season by seeding a potentially historic campaign. With the Reds off Monday, De La Cruz posted five home runs and five stolen bases in his opening 16 games.

If he maintains that pace over 162 games, De La Cruz would become the league's second player to post a 50-home run, 50-stolen base season, joining Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani.

How does he remain under-the-radar?

Reds' Elly De La Cruz puts up historic statistics

De La Cruz virtually disappeared last season. The fourth-year major leaguer may have appeared in every game, but a lower-body injury hampered his second half. His speed and power disappeared.

Both elements of De La Cruz's game are back.

His speed was evident when he raced 180 feet on a ground ball that initially landed about 20 feet in front of home plate and bounced into center field. De La Cruz beat the throw at second base and scored what proved to be the winning run April 6.

His power remains fluid, slamming a three-run home run during Sunday's 9-6 loss to the Los Angeles Angels at Great American Ball Park. With the Reds (9-7) scheduled to open a series against the visiting San Francisco Giants (6-10) on Tuesday, De La Cruz has two homers in his past three outings.

His hobbled second-half performance may have shaded De La Cruz's early-career versatility, but if he maintains a 50-50 pace throughout the summer, he will be back on everyone's radar.