CGC Cards' Featured Card of the Month: 2022 Bowman Elly De La Cruz

2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP-50 Elly De La Cruz Click images to enlarge.

Sport: Baseball

Set: 2022 Bowman

Card: #BCP-50 and #BP-50 Elly De La Cruz

What makes it special? Ever since his June 6 Major League debut, Cincinnati Reds infielder Elly De La Cruz has been all the rage in baseball. Rarely has a rookie made such an immediate impact on his team and on the sport. At only 21 years old (the fifth youngest player in the league), the 6'5" rookie phenom has wowed MLB fans with his bat, lightning quick speed and strong arm. In just his second game, De La Cruz hit a 458-foot bomb for his first Major League home run.

In only two months playing in the majors, De La Cruz already has 53 hits, 7 home runs, 20 RBIs and 17 stolen bases, as of August 2. Additionally, he's tied as the fastest runner on the bases in the MLB this season, while also having the strongest arm of all infielders with an average throw of 95.6 mph. Upon being called up to the Majors, De La Cruz led the Reds on a 12-game win streak (Cincy's longest since 1957) that helped them take over first place in the NL Central. If he keeps this up, De La Cruz looks poised to be one of the most exciting players in all of baseball for years to come.

Did you know? Only two weeks into his MLB career, Elly De La Cruz became the youngest player to hit for the cycle (hitting a single, double, triple and home run in the same game) since 1972. In addition, just a month into being called up, he accomplished something no Cincinnati player had done in over 100 years: During a game on July 8, the speedy infielder became the first Reds player since 1919 to steal second, third and home — all in the same inning. Both incredible feats show how well-rounded of a player he is already.

Total graded by CGC Cards: There are numerous examples of Elly De La Cruz's "1st Bowman" issues within the 2022 Bowman series, including multiple parallels, which all use the same image of the young Reds phenom at bat. Of the standard Bowman Prospects version, there are 180 graded examples of the card in the CGC Cards Population Report, as of early August 2023. CGC Cards has also graded 12 different parallels of the same card, including the Sky Blue (5), Fuchsia (3), Green (2), Purple (1) and Purple Pattern (1) inserts.

The series also has a standard Bowman Chrome Prospects version, of which there are 232 graded examples in the CGC Cards Population Report, as of early August 2023. CGC Cards has also graded 14 different parallels of the same Chrome card, including the Atomic Refractor (4), Purple Refractor (2), Refractor (2), Purple RayWave Refractor (1), Blue Refractor (1), Fuchsia Lava Refractor (1), Fuchsia Refractor (1), Lava Refractor (1) and Speckle Refractor (1) inserts.

LEFT: 2022 Bowman Prospects #BP-50 Elly De La Cruz - Sky Blue RIGHT: 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP-50 Elly De La Cruz - Fuchsia Lava Refractor Click images to enlarge.

CGC Cards median grade: CGC Cards Mint+ 9.5

CGC Cards highest graded: There are 98 standard examples graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 of the Bowman Prospects #BP-50, as well as one other parallel graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 — the Sky Blue insert (3). Additionally, there are 89 standard examples graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 of the Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP-50, as well as one other parallel graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 — the Refractor insert (1).

Sales highlights: An example of a Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP-50 graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 realized $186 through PWCC in July 2023. Additional sales of parallels through PWCC include a #BP-50 Sky Blue graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10 that sold in September 2022 for $77 and a #BCP-50 Fuchsia Lava Refractor graded CGC Cards 9.5 that sold in September 2022 for $180.

CGC Cards Sports Registry: The card is part of these company sets: 2022 Bowman Prospects, which has 5 competitors, and 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects, which has 10 competitors. It is also part of De La Cruz Players Set. Due to De La Cruz's popularity with collectors, his Player Set already has six competitors, even though the Reds star has only been in the majors for two months. Collector bdbeardain has assembled a Player Set called Elly De La Cruz that has amassed 8,754 points that includes the standard 2022 Bowman Chrome Prospects #BCP-50 version of this card, which is graded CGC Cards Gem Mint 10.

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