Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr. will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday, weather permitting, per the Athletic’s David O’Brien (via Twitter).
That’s obviously great news for the Braves, who have been without their star outfielder since July 10th of last season. Acuna Jr. played in 82 games in 2021, almost exactly half the season, slashing .283/.394/.596 with 24 home runs and 17 stolen bases across 360 plate appearances. When healthy, there’s little doubt that he is one of the most electrifying talents in the game.
A healthy Acuna Jr. could potentially take over in center, though the Braves preferred to use him in right field in 2021. Adam Duvall has been Atlanta’s primary centerfielder this season, and he’s held his own defensively. Eddie Rosario and Marcell Ozuna have primarily been in the corners with Alex Dickerson, another corner outfielder, getting at-bats as the designated hitter. Someone from that group is going to lose at-bats when Acuna returns, with Dickerson the likeliest to find himself on the bench.
Yes and when we get Soroka and Yates back we will be stacked.
I’m excited for them to come back as well but I really wouldn’t expect them to assume their pre injury form for quite a while, if ever. Fingers crossed though.
If they are say 80% of what they were then thats still a huge get for the Braves.
It will be amazing to see soroka back on the mound. Really rooting for him and not a braves fan
If soroka can come back and happens to be what he was before he gets injured, that is incredibly huge for the Braves. In fact, I’d argue, that if Acuna and Soroka come back to their pre-injury selves, that soroka would have a bigger impact to the team today than Acuna simply because our starting pitching is thin and has been a bit of a roller coaster. Truth be told,the rehab assignment for soroka will be a long one if you ask me …
This is good news for baseball. Not a Braves fan, but looking forward to seeing Acuna play.
Agree looking forward to acunas return as well —- good him I n fantasy draft
This is a big deal, at least everyone has made it one, this young player has a huge amount of pressure to perform. As a Braves fan, I hope he comes through.
Yes
That’s huge.
Hopefully the Braves find a new home for Duvall.
Soler for Duvall. Get it done!
You hush your mouth. Arcia should be first. Dickerson is just getting a little unlucky. I would love soler back but Miami won’t make a crazy trade 2 years in a row like that. Soler is on a 3 year contract. Gonna be interesting with Dansby’s contract coming up after this season. Wonder how AA is gonna address this. I expect an extension for Max Fried to come at sometime.
Arcia is only on the team for his defense in case Swanson is hurt or needs rest. He is not going anywhere.
Swanson is gone after this season. I don’t think the Braves are bringing him back.
Grissom will take over for Swanson in the near future.
my thought as well…
Apparently you haven’t compared their stats Duvall is WAAAY better than Soler!
Soler? The guy who has compiled a puny 3.5 WR over his entire career?
My fantasy team’s fans are gonna be stoked!
Ronald is itching to get back. We need him to make these pitchers pay!!
Just please cancel the season, owners.
Unleash the Beast!
Mets aren’t going to be happy. With all the stars injured, it will be nice to see one face of the game return.
Rosario proving to be a fluke. His career was on the way down when we got him last year and managed to milk whatever was left to a WS.
Not complaining, appreciate the run he put on, but I don’t trust him long term. Resigning him was a bad idea.
Absolutely. Cleveland gave him away for peanuts and no other team rushed to sign him in the offseason. He’s just not that good.
I wouldn’t write him off. It’s only been like a week. I know his stats are brutal right now, but short Spring and just some tough luck could be a part. I’m not going to panic unless his bat doesn’t heat up by the end of May.
It’s been 10 games. This is baseball. Nothing matters or means anything when that’s the time frame you’re working with.
*WORLD CHAMPIONS
Rosario is more suited for LF. When Acuna returns, it’ll be Acuna in RF, Rosario in LF and Duvall in CF for now. Ozuna becomes the DH.
Ozuna is the hairy chested OF for the Braves, for now
Many (most) players come back from such a serious injury at a fraction of their previous athletic performance. Wait and see mode for Acuna but best of luck.
Yeah, Chipper was terrible when he came back..twice. [/sarcasm:off].
Chipper returned from the same injury and he turned out ok
You sir, are about as wrong as wrong can be –
https://www.healio.com/news/orthopedics/20200514/no-effect-on-career-advancement-found-in-baseball-players-with-histories-of-acl-reconstruction
Concern for Acuna Jr for sure, but I think the Braves fans should be more concerned with Soroka returning to anything close to his previous form. Achilles surgery notoriously requires a full year AFTER returning to game action before players report feeling close to 100%. Back-to-back Achilles surgeries? Good luck.
Dickerson needs to go.
Tuesday, 5 pm: Ronald Acuna Jr suffered a setback Tuesday while warming up prior to his first rehab appearance with Triple-A Gwinnett.