Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz ran the bases on Monday as he continues his recovery from a right hamstring strain. He has been on the 10-day injured list since June 1. De La Cruz is scheduled to repeat the exercise on Tuesday.
De La Cruz injured his hamstring on May 31 while running after a hit against the Braves. A follow-up MRI on Friday showed the injury was about 90 percent healed.
With strength coach Rob Fumagalli supervising, De La Cruz completed two circuits running the bases at Great American Ball Park on Monday. He later took ground balls and batting practice with the team.
Manager Terry Francona said a Minor League rehab assignment is expected to begin by this weekend if there are no setbacks. "My guess is things will go well because he’s doing so well," Francona said. "Then we’ll send him out to play over the weekend."
De La Cruz has lobbied to skip the rehab assignment and return directly to the Reds. Entering Monday night’s game against the Mets, the team was 3-9 since placing him on the injured list.