Ahead of Tuesday’s deadline to protect eligible players from being selected in next month’s Rule 5 draft, the Cincinnati Reds added top prospect Elly De La Cruz and five others to their roster of 40.
De La Cruz, a 6-foot-5 shortstop who will turn 21 on January 11, is ranked by MLB Pipeline as Cincinnati’s No. 1 prospect and the No. 14 prospect overall in baseball. By joining the roster, he will be a part of his first major league spring training in 2023.
“I think he’s going to come into camp as a roster player and he’s going to keep going, keep going,” Reds general manager Nick Krall said. “That’s what he has to do. I think for him, it’s being a top-tier athlete, using his athleticism to make things happen.”
A five-tool talent, the switch-hitting De La Cruz hit .304 with a .945 OPS, 28 home runs and 47 stolen bases in 120 games for Class-A Advanced Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga in 2022. De La Cruz can also play second base and third base, and could get looks in center field before landing in an established position.
The Rule 5 draft will take place on December 7 at the winter meetings in San Diego.
Cincinnati also added shortstop Noelvi Marte to its 40-player roster.
The Reds’ No. 2 prospect and the No. 17 overall prospect in baseball, Marte was among the prospects acquired in the July 30 trade that sent rotation ace Luis Castillo to the Mariners. In more than 115 games at the Class A Advanced level this year, the 21-year-old Marte batted .279 with an .829 OPS, 19 home runs, 68 RBIs and 23 steals.
Other additions included left-handed pitcher Brandon Williamson and right-handed pitchers Levi Stoudt, Ricky Karcher and Lyon Richardson.