'Fastest man in the world' jump-starts youthful Reds

That's fast enough for De La Cruz to dub himself "the fastest man in the world."

De La Cruz was the most recent call-up to a Reds infield that has quickly become crowded. Matt McLain has also been a revelation for Cincinnati since his promotion on May 15. He is slashing .336/.387/.518 with two home runs and 10 RBI since his arrival. Both players are primarily shortstops, with McLain's presence forcing De La Cruz to split time between shortstop and third base.

Reds manager David Bell gave his rookies a vote of confidence after a 4-3 win in St. Louis on Sunday, saying "There's no question that you continue to develop at this level, and you have to continue to learn and make adjustments. You get to a point where you need to be challenged, and the guys that belong here and are going to stay here and be good players here find a way to keep improving while they're here," per Cincinnati.com

The average age for the Reds coming into the 2023 season was 27.22 years old, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. That's including the likes of Joey Votto, who is 39 and has spent the entire season on the IL with a shoulder injury. However, after recent call-ups, the Reds' average age is down to 26.88 years old.

The Reds haven't made the playoffs since 2020, when they earned the seventh seed in the pandemic-shortened season.  But there's reason for optimism for baseball's oldest franchise, as the kids have brought desperately needed energy back to Great American Ballpark.

Third-place Cincinnati is 31-35 in the weak NL Central, four games behind the first-place Pirates, and 4-2 since calling up De La Cruz.

While the playoffs aren't a guarantee this season, there's no doubt that this team is going to be a problem for the rest of the league for years to come.