MLB fans react to Elly De La Cruz's 456 ft homer after being trolled by Brewers jumbotron - "Don't mess with this dude"
It hasn't even been two months since Elly De La Cruz made his Major League debut and it is safe to say he has amazed the baseball world. The Milwaukee Brewers scoreboard technicians felt it in the Cincinnati Reds' latest game on the road.
In the game, Elly De La Cruz was robbed of a leadoff homer by Joey Wimer in the outfield. Leading off the Reds lineup, Cruz hit starter Colin Rea's 93 mph pitch toward the center-left field. It seemed to be sailing before Wimer grabbed it with a leaping effort to send Cruz back to the dugout.
As Cruz came to the plate for his next at-bat, the Brewers tried to troll the Cincinnati rookie as they put up a small message for him on their jumbotron.
"ALMOST HIT A HOME RUN IN THE FIRST INNING … BUT DIDN’T.”
"Almost hit a home run in the first inning... but didn't"
Brewers scoreboard operators should've known better than to tempt Elly
(via @CincyProblems) pic.twitter.com/D0TBRZUP6K
The scoreboard technicians would only have themselves to blame when the 21-year-old hit a massive two-run blast toward right field, giving his side the lead. Cruz hit a 456-ft flyball that went above the promotional white Toyota Sequoia positioned beside the scoreboard.
ELLY DE LA CRUZ JUST HIT THIS OUT THE BALL PARK 😱
456 FEET. UNREAL.
(via @Reds)
pic.twitter.com/iVjTFXUq3a
Fans were impressed and they took to social media to heap praise on the young man:
@TalkinBaseball_ @CincyProblems Watching the ball go past that troll is one of the greatest regular season plays in MLB history
Don't mess with this dude! twitter.com/TalkinBaseball…
@TalkinBaseball_ @CincyProblems This is the second time they’ve tried to troll Elly with the score board. The last time they said he in fact “wasn’t the fastest man in the world” then stole home
@TalkinBaseball_ @CincyProblems We got Jinxed by our own staff member
@BleacherReport @Reds Dude almost took out the Sequoia 😂😂
@BleacherReport @Reds THAT BALL HAD A FAMILY
@BleacherReport @Reds CRUZ MISSILE🚀
@TheAthletic He hurt that baseball. Watching it in person was quite the scene.
What NERD in the control room thought it would be a good idea to poke the bear like that 🤓?
The result…a baseball that nearly left the stadium 🏟️! #ellydelacruz twitter.com/theathletic/st…
Elly De La Cruz's home run in vain as Reds lose to the Brewers
Even though Colin Rea gave up the two-run homerun to Elly De La Cruz, he was solid for the rest of the game. That helped the Milwaukee Brewers earn a victory against the Cincinnati Reds by a 3-2 margin.
The gap widened at the top of the NL Central table for the Brewers as they now lead the Reds by 1.5 games. Both teams have a sizeable lead over the next-best Chicago Cubs, so it seems that this series could be a decisive factor in the division standings.