MLB stolen base leader appears to challenge Noah Lyles to race
Aug 4, 2024; Paris Saint-Denis, France; Noah Lyles (USA) reacts after competing in a men’s 100m semifinal during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Stade de France. Mandatory Credit: Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports
The fastest man in the world may soon be matching up against the fastest man in Major League Baseball.
American sprinting star Noah Lyles, a six-time world champion in track and field as well as the reigning Olympic gold medalist in the men’s 100-meter race, made headlines this week for his race against the popular Internet streamer IShowSpeed. The two men competed in a 50-meter race for $100,000, and Lyles narrowly came out on top.
Different angles show how close IShowSpeed was to beating Olympic gold medalist Noah Lyles 👀 pic.twitter.com/m3o83jiCHN
— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) November 7, 2024
Cincinnati Reds star Elly De La Cruz reacted to the video on X by seemingly challenging Lyles (as well as IShowSpeed) to a race.
“they think they’re fast! I’ll beat them for sure,” wrote De La Cruz.
they think they’re fast! I’ll beat them for sure https://t.co/GXAVCwG4Q4
— Elly De la cruz (@ellylacocoa18) November 7, 2024
A race between De La Cruz and Lyles would definitely be an entertaining sight. De La Cruz led Major League Baseball with 67 stolen bases last season and now holds 102 of them in less than two full career seasons. He also has some advantages over Lyles in terms of age (22 years old to Lyles’ 27) and height (6-foot-5 to Lyles’ 5-foot-10).
De La Cruz’s speed is already the stuff of legend thanks to the countless highlights he has produced on MLB basepaths. A showdown between him and Lyles would likely feed families for generations to come.
