Reds' Elly De La Cruz: Getting rare day off

De La Cruz is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rockies.

For just the second time all season, De La Cruz will will hit the bench. According to Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer, De La Cruz's absence isn't related to the hand injury he's been managing recently; instead, the 22-year-old is just getting a well-overdue afternoon off while Cincinnati wraps up its series with Colorado with a day game after a night game. De La Cruz won't have much of a chance to catch his breath during the upcoming week while he makes his first All-Star Game appearance next Tuesday in Texas, so the Reds presumably wanted to build in some extra rest for him heading into the Midsummer Classic. Santiago Espinal will step in at shortstop for De La Cruz on Thursday.