The Cincinnati Reds star Elly De La Cruz can hit baseballs to places where Statcast loses track. He’s the kind of electric, highlight-generating superstar MLB lives for. And yet, when he had the chance to put on a show in the 2025 Home Run Derby, the Reds shortstop declined.
Good. He made the right call.
It’s not about fear, and it’s not about avoiding the spotlight. It’s about staying smart—and staying consistent. The truth is, the Derby has a track record of ruining players’ swings, disrupting their timing, and turning second halves into slumps.
While neither of this theories have been confirmed by stats or science, some players can be skepticle.
Swing Ruiner in Disguise?
The Home Run Derby is fun. It’s flashy. But some players have stated that it’s also a mechanics-wrecking grind.
You’re not just hitting bombs. You’re swinging for the fences every 15 seconds, racking up 50–70 full-effort hacks in a single night. And those swings aren’t the same as what guys take during a game. They’re exaggerated uppercuts—optimized for moonshots, not line drives or hard grounders.
The list of stars who slumped after the Derby is long and well-documented. While it does not happend to every participant.
Bobby Abreu hit 41 homers in the 2005 Derby. He hit six the rest of the season.
Josh Hamilton went nuclear in 2008 at Yankee Stadium. He wasn’t the same in August.
Juan Soto won the Derby in 2022 and immediately fell into a month-long funk. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. did the same thing after his historic 91-homer showcase in 2019.
Is it a curse? No. But it’s a pattern. And if you’re in the middle of a breakout season—like Elly De La Cruz is—it’s just not worth the risk.
The Stakes Are Higher for Elly
This isn’t a veteran in the twilight of his prime or a guy looking to juice his Q score. Elly is 23 years old. He’s finally putting it all together: 18 home runs, a much-improved strikeout rate, and game-breaking speed that makes him a nightmare on the bases.
This season is about establishing himself as a franchise cornerstone, not becoming a Home Run Derby footnote.
He’s not some three-true-outcomes slugger. His value comes from the chaos he creates with his legs, his rocket arm, and his ability to spray the ball all over the field. Changing his approach to win a trophy that’s made of glass? Hard pass.
Let the Others Chase the Crown
Ronald Acuña Jr. wants in. Let him. Shohei Ohtani might participate again. Let him swing for Japan. The Derby will still have star power. It’ll still draw millions of eyeballs. And by October, nobody will care who won anyway.
What they will care about is whether Elly De La Cruz helps Cincinnati get back to the playoffs—and whether his second half matches the brilliance of his first.
That’s what matters.
Protect the Product
MLB wants its young stars front and center, and understandably so. However, players must also protect their long-term success. And for Elly De La Cruz, saying no to the Derby is saying yes to durability, development, and doing things his way.
He’s not ducking at the moment. He’s preserving his momentum.
In the long run, that’s a much smarter swing.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Cincinnati Reds Superstar Makes Smart Call on Home Run Derby appeared first on Heavy Sports.