4:22PM: Speaking with The Athletic’s David O’Brien (X link) and other reporters after the game, Acuna said he will be placed on the 10-day injured list tomorrow, but he feels he might miss only about a month rather than a longer absence. Acuna compared the feel of the injury to his 2018 ACL sprain rather than his tear three years ago.
2:49PM: Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. exited today’s game against the Pirates in the first inning due to an apparent injury suffered while running the bases, and he limped off the field while gesturing to his left knee. The Braves later termed the issue “left knee soreness.” Of note, the ACL tear that required surgery during the 2021 campaign affected Acuna’s right knee.
The severity of the injury is not yet clear and likely won’t be known in detail until after the game, but it appears likely that Acuna will miss at least some time due to the issue given his history of lower half injuries. In addition to the aforementioned ACL tear in his right leg, Acuna has also suffered a left knee injury before in his career. During his rookie season back in 2018, the phenom suffered a left knee contusion and mild sprain of his left ACL that kept him out of action for one month.
An absence of virtually any length for Acuna would be a major blow to the Braves on the heels of a tough month of May that’s seen them fall to second place in the NL East, seven games back of the surging Phillies for the division crown. That’s particularly true given the offensive funk the club has found itself in this season; Atlanta’s hitters have collectively posted a wRC+ of just 88 in the month of May that leaves the Braves bottom-six among all major league clubs.
Acuna has been in the thick of that slump. It’s been a rather pedestrian start to the season for the 26-year-old, as he’s posted a roughly league average .246/.348/.356 slash line in 221 trips to the plate entering play today. Despite those uninspiring numbers, there’s no denying Acuna’s ability to carry an offense when he’s at his best; the star outfielder is of course just one season removed from a historic 2023 campaign that saw him win the NL MVP award while crushing 40 home runs, swiping 70 stolen bases, and leading the major leagues with a .416 on-base percentage.
Acuna’s offensive malaise in 2024 after a standout 2023 season is shared between much of the Braves’ lineup. Austin Riley has not appeared in a game in two weeks amid an intercostal injury but sported a wRC+ of just 102 when healthy enough to appear in games, and other key pieces such as Matt Olson, Ozzie Albies, and Michael Harris II have posted similarly pedestrian numbers at the plate this season after the club’s incredible 104-win campaign last year.
Looking at the potential roster impacts of Acuna’s injury, Adam Duvall and Jarred Kelenic are handling the corner outfield spots in Acuna’s absence this afternoon, though it’s possible the club could turn to Forrest Wall or J.P. Martinez to supply additional depth should Acuna require a trip to the injured list. It’s also possible that Acuna’s injury forces the Braves to make a decision regarding Riley’s injury, as the club has effectively been playing a man down for two weeks while he’s been unavailable and the club may not be able to afford the lack of production without Acuna’s bat in the lineup.
Anybody have a sense of why these guys are struggling so badly this year?
Are they struggling or did they overachieve last season? More like the latter.
Acuna is one of the biggest babies in the sport. He is most likely okay. Regardless, this will be a good opportunity for the team to replace him.
Banner day for ‘TradeAcuna’. He might be on to something. Acuna seems washed.
Braves fans. Sheesh
As a Pirates fan, I’d be glad to trade Suwinski for the “washed Acuna”
Notice how one of my biggest critics is Acuna being strikeout prone. Last season, he drastically cut down on them and his production got him an MVP. Now he is right back where he was before.,,,overhyped “star” with terrible baseball instincts and a showboating persona.
@tiredolderdude: Don’t believe that Trade Acuna speaks for Braves fans here. He definitely doesn’t.
5-10 years from now, the biggest memory Braves fans will have of Acuna is the Braves winning their first title since 1995 without him. This constant Acuna defense is just as obnoxious as me hating on him frankly. He is as much of a liability to the team as he is an asset. The team will be better off without him.
@Trade: You’ve pretty much cornered “obnoxious” here regarding any discussion of Acuna. Why don’t you talk some more about how the Braves couldn’t win in 2021 unless they trade for MadBum. I miss those fever dreams of yours.
Funny how you have nothing to deflect my argument other than the MadBum fiasco. I already put my head down and said the signing would have been a mistake. We are talking about Acuna here. He sucks, he is overhyped and does not need to be on this team for the Braves to win.
Do you have any openings for next week, Dr. Trade Acuna? Need a physical and no time to take a trip to Venezuela for affordable medical care.
Something tells me you have soft hands and a bedside manner.
You’re probably right on their soft hands……but their bedside manner is probably closer to a leaking catheter bag.
.600 ball is underachieving? I’ll take that.
I’m not completely up to date on all the advanced metrics but I’d expect his barrel rate and xwoba are higher than his production right now, meaning before injury due for positive regression.
All-Stars Riley and Murphy missing time doesn’t help (and not putting Riley on the IL earlier was a huge mistake). Their replacements (Tromp and Short) are lucky to have M,B contracts.
They’ve had a lot of games either lost to or mucked up by bad weather. Maybe that has messed with their production. Who knows?
Tromp or Short would not make any other 29 MLB Teams Roster! Not MLB Roster, maybe AA OR A. Several of their pitchers including Jesse Chavez, Dylan Lee and many others in their Minor League system. Their biggest problem to me is the Manager and coaches!! Ron Washington demanded accountability from the infield and outfield players he tutored on a daily basis! There is no leadership among the current coaches and Snitker has no clue on how to use the Bullpen. He will take a LH Starter out and replace them with another LH Pitcher, and same with righties! After the other team has loaded their lineup to face a Lefty or Righty, he will put the same in the game so the opposing team doesn’t have to make any changes! The object, “besides winning!” is to force the other team use up their bench and bullpen. Snitker just gives them a break or free pass to not have to make any changes! Also, he would probably rather you pull 2 or 3 of his teeth before he challenges a call on the field! Just an overall idiot! He has been given all of this talent, and a robot could win more games than him!
Why are you whining about Dylan lee and his less than 1.30 ERA in 15 appearances this season? Chavez has been a more than reliable long man for the last 3 plus years. Do you know which bp pitcher is on a rest day (or anything about how much they’ve been used in previous games)? You should probably revisit the 3 batter rule while you’re ranting about pen usage. Can’t stop laughing long enough to address the rest of your fever dream.
I agree with TradeAcuna quite a bit. There’s way too much showboating and doesn’t seem to have that baseball instinct or whatever you want to call it to make adjustments when he’s struggling. Guys like Freeman and Chipper were always fine tuning their game to stay on top. A lot of the great players are and I don’t know that I see that same ability with Acuña. Great talent for sure but talent alone doesn’t play at the highest level. Everyone is talented.
This is much like the Freeman and Heyward arrivals long ago. The world loved Heyward and Freeman in many ways received little attention at the time. But it was obvious to anyone who knows baseball who the better player would be long term. Francoeur and McCann is another comparison. The Heywards and Francoeurs of the world have short success but fade. I hope Acuña isn’t in that category but I fear that he is.
In contrast I feel safer with guys like Albies and Riley. Even with Riley’s current struggles something tells me he’ll figure it out and hit like an All Star before the year is finished. I don’t have the same confidence Acuña will return to form though.
Braves trading Ronald would be like mariners trading Julio, just because they are having bad seasons doesn’t mean they need to be shipped off
Pitchers learning how to pitch better to them after being seen enough times. Coming back down to earth as they say. May been playing or their heads some last few years. Pitchers make adjustments.
Because it’s baseball. Any idea how Marcel Ozuna morphed into Barry Bonds or Chris Sale into Randy Johnson? It’s baseball.
Thanks for this total non-answer. Yeah I’m sure it’s just random. You’re a waste of time.
You’ll figure it out one day. Why is it not totally random like everything else. I’m sorry that you have to go through life so unable to see why baseball is so popular.
Do you have any brain cells at all?
The bad commenters magically always seem to appear when the kids start getting out of school.
No Ronald Acuna? That’s okay at least you have Ronald McDonald
Good one
McDonald’s or IT’s Always Sunny?
Ronald McDonald is bad how dare you say that name he promotes obesity you fat shamer
I miss the Ronald statues I also miss Mac tonight (even though Mac is not child friendly anymore)
Injuries are piling up for the Braves. Can’t fault them that’s just bad luck.
Oh man. you never want to see the best players go down.
Soreness my ass. That was way more than soreness. I’m pretty sure his MRI is not coming back showing soreness.
Trade for Baddoo of the Tigers.
Re: his replacement – Leury Garcia has been hitting well at AAA (.320 AVG/.824 OPS) in 100 AB while J.P. Martinez has cooled off, but he was on a hot streak for awhile. They’d been playing Kelenic/Duvall as a platoon, which should buy them some time. Hopefully it’s someone with a bigger bat than Forrest Wall.
I thought they would just go with Kelenic in right.
@Melche: Going to be surprised if AA trades for an of’er if Acuna’s med evaluation comes back as a sprained knee that will only keep him out for 2-4 weeks.
Bryan Reynolds would be a good fit it would only take waldrep and probably Ritchie (he went to my high school!)
sad tormented neglected mariners fan
That’s some dream you’re having. You think AA is going to give up Waldrep? There’s zero chance.
With sale and Lopez stepping up even without strider the rotation is fine, when (or if) they lose fried next year then strider can replace his spot
A rotation of fried Morton sale lopez and AJSS looks fine to me
Nuts. It seems like the braves winning is based on starters being healthy and in the lineup. Murphy & reily are on the shelf, the two biggest bats missing. Ozuna is hitting above par but the rest are now slumping. The Braves need the bench to step it up. Reily & Murphy are supposed to be back next week.
If the braves released ozuna when he was at his low then I don’t know what the braves would look like now
To know that you will make the playoffs regardless in all likelihood is a privilege and a bit of a downer because what is the point of pushing so hard to win a division when there is no real advantage in the playoffs seemingly the last 2 years. If that is a subconscious mind state good luck turning it on in the playoffs. But even if you win the division you will have trouble turning it on in postseason after sitting for 5 days. Perhaps their minds are trapping them into a lack of gamer-mode type immersion in the present moment throughout the days of the early-season.
Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to see the Braves 6 to 7 games back on Memorial Day. Strider/Acuña out for season. Likely still make playoffs though. Maybe it’s Phillies turn to get taken out in the Divisional Round lol.
Well I didn’t expect the Phillies to be quite as excellent as they have been either. But it’s a long season. Many thought the Mets had the division sealed up in 22′.
That’s too bad and I hate the braves. Better to have star players on the field. Something not right with him this year.
Probably the best player in baseball but a drama queen he has a nick and acts like he was shot. Then he’s back playing the next day happens over and over never can tell whether he’s really hurt or not
While I don’t totally agree w/you. there’s a bit of truth there…………especially about not knowing how significant his injuries are at the time of occurrence. Also believe that he’s one of the best players in MLB. Not sure he’s the best—-and I’m a Braves fan so take that for what it’s worth (very little lol.)
Torn ACL, but awesome take.
Big Blow for the braves.yes acuna isn’t as good as last year but he also has been unlucky so far (342 xwoba vs 321 woba) he was going to bounce back not to 2023 level but probably to like a 120 ops+.
What makes it worse that the braves have the worst farm system in mlb when it comes to hitting (they do have some pitching depth) so there is no replacement.
The braves still could win a wild card of course.
@trojan toss: Not sure that’s a good composite comp for Acuna. Imo, his overall talent and game most closely resembles Roberto Clemente. Acuna’s defense can be iffy at times. Great speed saves some of his questionable reads and routes and his tremendous arm helps his D play up. Since his last knee injury he pretty much jogs out ground balls so the Rose comp is off base. Not criticizing him, just my observations on his play. I’m another Braves fan who’s extremely grateful Acuna wears the Braves uni. Special talent, but like all players he has his warts.
I’ll give you the speed that’s actually not an absurd comp but his fielding sucks which is why he doesn’t play center
Sad but comforting to know there seem to be no shortage of Braves haters. I thought the Dodgers cornered the market on irrational haters. Acuna is one of the best players in the game, his current production and injuries notwithstanding. Sad to see any player go down with an injury no matter what you think of his so-called attitude.
Spaghetti, uh oh
Spencer spaghetti trade incoming?
Acuna hasn’t been the same since getting hurt in the dominecan league last winter. Surprised that no one even talks about it
Not a big loss. He’s only 6% above league average. The Braves could probably find someone who can slash .246 / .348 / .356.
I hope he can get rested up and back to being a productive member of the team.
To be honest, the Braves weren’t getting much from Acuna this year. He’s basically played at replacement level (0.2 bWAR) so it’s not like a huge chunk of production has suddenly disappeared from the lineup. Unless the team craters over the next month, I don’t expect Acuna to come back any time soon. The team can afford to let him sit and heal.
Forrest Wall should get some much deserved run.
Reported by Braves @ 10:16pm: Acuna has complete tear of the ACL in his left knee and will miss the remainder of the 2024 season!!
This article did not age well
If it wasn’t for Chris Sale and Marcel Ozuna this team would be down there between the Mets & Marlins fighting for air. Who would have thought two months ago that those two guys would be holding things together?