Reds' Elly De La Cruz conundrum should serve as a lesson for the Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds have never been very fond of one another. Fortunately for the Lou, a new video from Reds media could fuel the divisional fire, and give Cardinal fans a good laugh. 

Cincy has been through the wringer developing young talent, and they finally have a star: Elly De La Cruz. Unfortunately, he’s well beyond their price range, and trade talks have been unearthed after a middling season in Ohio. 

Trace Fowler from CBox Sports gave his take on the Reds' recent trade rumors.

“What kind of league is it where you have clearly one of the budding superstars of the league on your roster, and as a fanbase there’s a genuine argument to be had, amongst each other, about whether or not you should get rid of him or keep him?” Fowler questioned the De La Cruz rumors. 

“What kind of league are we in, Nick? And what other league in the world do you have a guy who you went and found in the middle of the Dominican Republic, mind you? You went and found him! Nobody else really wanted the guy; you gave him $60,000, he gets to the big leagues, and what’s your reward? 

“Well, your reward is that you bring him up while he’s young, you let him hone his craft, and get him right where he’s about to take off and become the best player in the league. And what do you get out of it? Ohhhh, you get some prospects back for him! Wooooooooo! What a league! What an awesome league we’re watching and living in! That’s the problem I have with all of Major League Baseball. The current landscape that it sits in. It’s a joke!” 

Fowler makes a point. The uncertainty of returns when trading big-time players is a catacomb of anxiety for the modern fan. Still, plenty of people disagree, and Cardinals fans can learn something from this miserable crashout. 

Reds legend Joey Votto completely disagrees with media person's blowup 

Joey Votto, quite possibly the face of modern Reds baseball, couldn’t disagree more with Fowler’s take. 

Recently, Votto said that the Reds “should have traded him” and “never should’ve signed that contract.” 

When that hits a fan’s ear, it sounds grotesque. Don’t sign Votto? TRADE HIM??? It has the makings of a disaster. 

He went even further when he said that the Reds should learn from their mistakes and “trade Elly De La Cruz for as many prospects as they can get.” 

Now, before you freak out, take a step back. 

Votto has no emotional strings in this situation, and he’s often been coveted for his decisive takes and unbiased opinions. He’s made his money, his mark, his mojo; the game no longer controls the Canadian legend. 

If you really think about it, Votto is right. 

The Reds are a small-market team. They’ll always be a small-market team. No amount of realignment in the Collective Bargaining Agreement will change the environmental restraints of being housed in Cincinnati versus New York or Chicago. 

In this case, the Reds CANNOT afford to push all their chips in on one player. 

If you’re wondering how a team can ever win without doing so, take a look around. No, really. Stand up, stretch, and turn on your TV. 

The Tampa Bay Rays and Cleveland Guardians are currently battling to play the Milwaukee Brewers in the World Series. 

If someone had told you that five years ago, you’d have laughed in their face or assumed they were talking about an MLB The Show franchise simulation. 

But this is reality: savvy decisions and disciplined spending outweigh name value and box office contracts. 

The Brewers, Guardians, and Rays have all started dishing out contract extensions to players before they even hit the big leagues. That is how you get around the “Elly paradox.” You beat Scott Boras and his fellow agents to the punch. 

You build a development system that’s so profound that it churns out future big leaguers like Nestle makes chocolate during this time of year (what’re you guys gonna be for Halloween?).

Reds fans will sit and gripe about how De La Cruz amounted to nothing. About how the team didn’t give him the chance he deserved, and now they’re letting him walk. 

But what about the Spencer Steers? Or the Matt McLains? Or the Nick Lodolos? Chase Petty, anyone? 

I remember when Petty was throwing 100 mph in high school, and people had already deemed him a future All-Star. He now holds a career 7.17 ERA through his first 37.2 big-league innings. 

It’s not the lack of spending or the surplus of money in other markets; it’s the prospect pitfalls that leave your organization searching for external answers. 

This is a lesson for St. Louis Cardinals fans and media alike. 

The Redbirds are rebuilding slowly so they don’t miss a single step. Teams like the division-rival Reds vindicate POBO Chaim Bloom’s “slow and steady” approach. 

They jump hurdles but miss a turn. They make flashy moves but never address the core issue, leaving them in purgatory, with fans as sour as the patch kids. 

This isn’t advocating the Cardinals to flip every superstar they stumble across. More so, a warning about the lackluster impact a superstar can have on a dysfunctional organization. 

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