Ronald Acuña Jr. is seemingly one day away from his return to Truist Park. The Braves scratched Acuña from what would have been his sixth rehab appearance with Triple-A Gwinnett. Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase reports that Acuña is en route to meet the team in Atlanta. Francys Romero adds that the Braves intend to activate him from the injured list before tomorrow’s series opener against the Padres.
It’s three days shy of the one-year anniversary of Acuña’s season-ending ACL tear. On May 26, 2024, he tore the ligament in his left knee while bluffing a stolen base attempt. It was the second time in his seven-year career that a season had been cut short by a devastating knee injury. Acuña tore the ACL in his right knee in July 2021, sidelining him for their World Series run.
Acuña made a quicker return from his first ACL tear. He was reinstated before the end of April 2022. He showed some signs of rust throughout that year, hitting .266/.351/.413 the rest of the way. That was well below his 2018-21 production. He followed with a career-best season to win the 2023 NL MVP award. He’d been out to a slower start last season, batting .250/.351/.365 across 49 games.
The Braves took things more slowly with Acuña’s second ACL rehab. He didn’t log any game action in Spring Training and has spent the first two months of the season on the IL. Atlanta sent him to their complex to begin a rehab assignment 10 days ago. He played one game there before reporting to Gwinnett, where he collected five hits and took seven walks in five games. The Braves have evidently seen enough to plug him back into Brian Snitker’s lineup, presumably in his customary leadoff spot.
Alex Verdugo has been hitting atop the order while playing every day in left field. He’s struggling offensively for a second consecutive year. Verdugo has hit .257/.314/.330 without a home run in 118 plate appearances. That’s on par with his .233/.291/.356 batting line in last season’s disappointing run with the Yankees.
Acuña has been a full-time right fielder over the past half-decade. He’ll slot back into that position, where Eli White has played his way into regular playing time. He could slide to left field and cut into Verdugo’s reps. White hit .311/.367/.600 with eight extra-base hits in April. His bat has cooled this month (.269/.310/.358 with no home runs), but that’s still a bit better than what Verdugo has provided.
White hits right-handed but has been better without the platoon advantage throughout his career. The lefty-hitting Verdugo is much better against righty pitching, as expected. Jurickson Profar will be back from his PED suspension in July. He’ll presumably return to everyday left field work, though he’d be ineligible for postseason play if the Braves qualify.
Atlanta has clawed back to .500 following their 0-7 start to the season. They’re three games back of the NL’s final Wild Card spot, which is currently held by the team they’ll welcome tomorrow. San Diego swept the Braves over a four-game set to open the year, but they’re taking a six-game losing streak into this weekend’s series.
The Braves technically only need to create an active roster spot for Acuña’s return from the 10-day IL, but they’re quite likely to designate someone for assignment tomorrow. Drake Baldwin and Michael Harris II are the only hitters on the active roster who have minor league options. Luke Williams, Stuart Fairchild and Orlando Arcia are all out of options and have seen little to no playing time off the bench in recent weeks.
Happy news for baseball fans everywhere.
Says who
Me
Me
I am a Phillies fan and I am happy to see Acuna back out there. The game needs its stars, and I would love to see him stay healthy. Fanbases everywhere operate on star power, and the game is worse when they are unable to play..
@Carver: Braves fan here who felt the same way when Harper’s been injured. Much better for the game—and the rivalry—when he’s healthy and on the field vs the Braves.
He’s one of my favorite players for sure
It’s crazy how after 2025 he’ll have had 8 years and have played 140 games or more twice. One year being Covid shortened season, but still. Hopefully his knees are good to go now.
On one hand I doubt he can tear his knees again because he’s already done that
On the other hand he still has 2 Achilles tendons left…
2018 he was called up durimg season 2019 156 2020 covid 2021 short with 82 2022 119 2023 159 2024 short.
The 2 years he missed very significant time he suffered knee injuries. I understand what you were getting at, but in grand scheme of things he hasnt missed much outside of the knee injuries. Couple those with a short covid year and it makes it look rather extreme.
It will ve interesting down the road how careers account for 2020. That took a nice little chunk from one of the prime years of numerous players.
Hopefully we see a string of healthy seasons from Acuna going forward. The sport is better when it’s best athletes are on the field.
The knees will never be the same. Too bad for such a talented kid.
I think they’ll advise him to stop stealing for the most part. Just focus on the hitting. And despite him having a cannon, he’s not exactly a great RF. Vladdy Sr route incoming within the next few years. JMO
The early word is that he is not hustling to make his Uber trip from Gwinnett and might be a little late for tomorrow’s game…
Too little, too late for the sinking Bravos.
They had a terrible start but are now back to .500 and are getting their best player back, are you ok?
They just got swept by the Nationals and have SD and Philly next. They are doneski.
The schedule is 162 games. The Padres have lost six straight. Are they “doneski” as well?
The nationals have been streaky but will probably be in the playoff conversation next year
The Friars are fried right now
Lou – They came very close to sweeping the Red Sox in Fenway, they are fine ….. all they need is bullpen help.
Not to be confused with Max Fried
I don’t know how one can be a long-time baseball fan and not understand that it is a long season. As a Phillies fan, I find myself reminding a couple of friends who are Braves fans that it is likely that the Braves will be in the mix this season as they are just too strong of a roster to crater or write off in May for heavens sake.
Then again – comments sections everywhere are strewn with 15 year olds that cannot see beyond next week, along with Dunning-Kruger prototypes that spend huge amounts of their day as keyboard warriors and other various forms of trollboyz. So I should simply expect to see nonsense around 80% of the time anyway and it is my fault for hoping for more in the age of the red-hatted boobies.
Carver – Very true, so many here are reactionary and have yet to grasp the concept that playing bad now doesn’t mean they will always play bad in the future ….. being injured in the past doesn’t mean they will always be injured ….. playing great now doesn’t mean they will always play great in the future.
Many of them should remember all the examples which prove that out, why don’t they though?
It’s an ADD OCD world unfortunately.
They have the best record in baseball after the 0-7 start. It’s a long season, but you should pay attention before trying to sound like you know something.
6th worst record in the NL. They are a bottom feeder.
declaring a season done after 50 games is silly, especially when they’re getting back a player who has the potential to be one of the best players in the league
The Nationals started out 19-31 in 2019. We all know how that turned out.
or the braves themselves in 2021 lol
Lou Sassoll
Says the guy who is always talking out of Lou’s.
They have the 2nd best record in the NL since their 0-7 start and the best record in the NL the last month or so.
24-18 isn’t the best record in baseball since then.
Mets Era Thumping Soto
The Braves are the fifth team in MLB history to start 0-7 and get back to .500 in the same season.
Atlanta is the second-fastest to reach the mark at 21-21.
Sinking? After starting 0-7, they’re 24-17 in their last 41 games, which is a 95-win pace over a full season.
The braves were below .500 until the all-star break and went on to win the world series in 2021 without Acuña
I wonder if he roided in 2023. If he did they should 100% make it legal to take in baseball. These games are so friggin boring with these offenses. Bring back juiced baseball!!!
I agree.
If you think today’s offense is boring, you would have hated baseball in the 60s.
A Yankees fan would say some nonsense like this.
A 1965-69 Yankees fan? The 1968 team batted .214 and scored only 536 runs.
I was looking at overall batting averages from year to year before. Believe or not MLB from 2020-2025 was worse in batting average than 1965-1970. This is actually the worst it’s been since that 1965-1970 stretch that’s how bad these players are today.
Players are much better today. It’s more difficult to hit today for a number of reasons that include pitching velocity, repertoire, and pitching patterns, among other things.
In the 60s, most teams had several players who could barely hit the ball out of the infield. Many of these banjo hitters made all-star teams. It was easier to pitch back then because most hitters couldn’t do major damage. Today, every player in the lineup can take you deep.
Likewise, it was easier to hit because pitching was more predictable. Yet offense in the 60s was still supressed. Spend less time looking at batting averages and more time on the total package offered by modern players.
I watched plenty of 60s baseball, and, from my perspective, thinmgs weren’t better in the “good old days.” That’s true in most areas of life, not just in sports.
Much better than 65-70 but give me some 70’s, 80’s, 90’s rosters over today’s any day of the week. 70’s roster construction was so unique to each team. Hank Aaron beat you with a ridiculous snap of the wrists, Tom Seaver scraping knuckles, Nolan Ryan striking everybody out when it was embarrassing to be struck out. And then 80’s came the roids and there was just more action all over the place. And most importantly they played everyday (roids really helps with that)
Players didn’t strike out back then. They just grounded out weakly to the second baseman. Saying that banned substances, and cheating, makes sports better is an odd mountain to stand on.
Aaron, Morgan, Jackson, McCovey, Yaz, Stargell, Seaver, Ryan (throw him in for other decades too), Palmer, Bench…..come on
Take Dick Allen…pretty much Cecil/Prince Fielder clones
Lee May? That’s what you’re praying most players turn out to be these days.
Doc Ellis pitching a no-hitter on LCD? Nobody even goes 9 today!!!! Double plays? Brawls would start at 2nd base! Same for collisions at the plate.
Yeah the 1970’s sure seemed boring
@El Kabong: Lowering the mound after 1968 gave offenses a chance to finally catch up to pitching back then. Sure watched a lot of scoreless innings as a kid in the 60’s.
The proliferation of “odd mountains” in the world today is simply staggering…
The the heck does this have to do with being a Yankee fan? Baseball was more entertaining in the 90’s.
What did you think only the Red Sox or Yankees had roided players? Most of baseball was on roids – pitchers and hitters and if they weren’t they were probably in the minors because they couldn’t keep up.
Do you watch minor league baseball or Major League Baseball….the answer is the MLB. Why? Because the players are stronger and better. Same goes for roided versus unroided.
And also because I’m a Yankee fan I don’t have a mind of my own? Very bigoted of you. Not a good way to live life bud.
Do you know what bigotry is?
obstinate or unreasonable attachment to a belief, opinion, or faction, in particular prejudice against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular group.
“Something a Yankee fan would say”
You weren’t born a Yankees fan.
Tell that to my mom and dad bud. You think I know this crap because I had hockey fans as parents?
If I were born Jewish and became Christian or vice versa would you say the same thing to me? I have to be born something to identify as that? Birth assignment is mandatory to you huh? Can’t change your mind over the years? Hmmm
Definition of bigotry is right above amigo. Give it a study. Oh and….checkmate. Have a good night!!!
I’ll see myself out!
goodnight grampa.
After reading this I believe that I am a bigot…against the Mets.
He was 195 pounds in 2023. So, wtf are you talking about.
He had 74 steals – previous high 39 – close tk a 100% increase in SB’s
He had 84 k’s when he would average 1-2 k’s a game every season prior
He had 25 more XBH than he ever did prior to that season
Basically I’m saying his numbers exploded at an unnatural rate. Over the last 30-40 years complete stat line changes like this were more than likely fueled by steroids.
And then the kicker would be his knee exploding randomly running the bases. Plenty here to suspect potential steroid use. Choose to see it or close your eyes, not my problem.
Actually Yanks there have been long term studies that show that certain folks are more susceptible to ACL tears for structural reasons alone (and women as a group are also more prone to the tear).
An ACL tear is also an injury that tends to occur with no contact and for what appears to be little reason (i.e sudden but normal / routine change in direction). If you watch film of a typical ACL tear on the playing field, more often than not one is saying “wow – how did that happen?”.
Yanks4Life
Tell us all what happened in 2019, was that “unnatural” too.
People like you just can’t help themselves but make accusations with zero evidence. It’s typical though of how it works with some people.
Furthermore, you are absolutely clueless about sporting injuries, probably because you never played anything except on your keyboard.
For the record Mike Soroka tore the same achilles walking up stairs, it must have been roids, right?
Acuna was fully healthy in 2023 for only the second time in his 6 year (at the time) career. He played in his career best 159 games in 2023. Only once before—2019 (2nd year in MLB) when he played in 156—-had he ever played in more than 119 games. Posting “25 more XBH than he ever did in previous seasons” isn’t at all suspicious. He’s missed significant time due to various leg injuries in other seasons. The 2023 season also saw a large increase in offensive numbers across the board for the entirety of MLB—especially the entire Braves starting lineup that posted career best seasons. Given his good health and amount of games played, Acuna’s numbers weren’t at all out of line by comparison to the rise in other player’s higher numbers that season. Why aren’t you accusing every other MLB player who had better career numbers that season of steroid use? Did you even see the play that he blew his knee out in 2024? Made a quick pivot on a pickoff play at 2B and twisted his knee in an extremely awkward manner when his spikes hung in the dirt. You don’t have a “kicker.” You don’t have any evidence. You conveniently ignore the fact that he’s never failed steroid testing. Nothing at all to suspect any steroid use. You obviously didn’t spend one second researching to see if any other player had an increase in “25 more XBH” than they had in their previous years. You’re not aware that in the 2022 off season Acuna focused on changing his approach to make more contact w/fastballs.. Your conspiracy theory doesn’t hold water.
Bye bye Luke Williams!
you suck
They sucked in the 1st half of 21 then went on to win the World series
This year will probably be another 2022 lost/bad for acuna since most players don’t make it to their previous level after 1 year
I still think he can hit 40+ homers but I doubt he’s going for 30+ steals nowadays
Love him or hate him, gotta commend how he and the Braves have gone about this. Hats off to you king! Go get em’ Ronald. You deserve this moment after dealing with such a long arduous process aptly known as MLB IL rehab stints. Once again, welcome back!
Didn’t you say that days ago?
Guy looked pretty good in the minors this year. Let’s hope he can stay on the field. Otherwise, I’ll start calling him Mike Trout Jr.
He’s had 2 major injuries his entire career. That’s it.
@Fowlerrc
As I said, let’s see if he can stay on the field. I highly doubt that he can. He’s cooked.
Still think so? It’s not hard to spout off BS and not back it up with anything.
He will get to play against his brother, a division rival, on the biggest stage. Can’t wait to see them on the same field. Feels like its setting up for a very exciting September in the NL East.
Just more racism from the same account in every single reply