On Thursday night at PNC Park, the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds delivered a moment that had nothing to do with batting averages, win probabilities, or playoff races — and everything to do with perspective.
Two of MLB’s tallest young stars — Oneil Cruz (6’7”) and Elly De La Cruz (6’5”) — ended up standing near second base alongside Reds infielder Matt McLain, who measures a full eight inches shorter than either of them. The result? A photo that instantly became internet gold.
The official MLB account on X (formerly Twitter) summed it up perfectly: “the guys being dudes.”
Cutting Loose in the Middle of MLB Games
Baseball fans have seen this kind of visual gag before — the classic example being Aaron Judge towering over Jose Altuve — but it’s rare to see two players with NBA-level height essentially “bookending” a much shorter teammate.
The scene was made even better by the fact that all three players seemed in on the joke, standing in a way that highlighted the height disparity for the cameras.
While the box score will record what happened between the lines, this snapshot is one for the lighter side of baseball history — a reminder that sometimes, the game’s best moments happen in between pitches.
