Cincinnati Reds rookie Elly De La Cruz homers after umpires had him remove knob piece from bat

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cincinnati Reds rookie Elly De La Cruz pointed at the knob of his bat after hitting a 455-foot homer at Washington in a reference to the removal of a plastic covering earlier in the game. The 21-year-old De La Cruz, a key engine behind Cincinnati’s rise to the top of the NL Central, had an empty sensor cover on the knob of his bat. But it was removed after Nationals manager Dave Martinez questioned its use before the infielder batted in the second. Major League Baseball said “the housing” is permissible, and that was communicated to the Nationals. De La Cruz then led off the fifth with a massive drive to right-center.