CINCINNATI (WXIX) - The mental battle is what makes baseball the sport that it is. Every hitter gets cold. Players are always banged up as the season goes along. Every day, you have to put that adversity to the side and perform. It’s never easy.

The 2025 season has challenged Spencer Steer and Elly De La Cruz in particular in ways neither player had experienced yet in their young big league careers. They’ve been tested on nearly a daily basis. Neither player is looking up at the scoreboard right now and seeing the individual statline that they expected heading into the year.

On Friday, they got to feel some of the payoff for their work and their patience, and so did a Reds’ team that’s counting on Steer and De La Cruz to be its two best power hitters. Steer had two homers and De La Cruz’

See Full Page