Reigning National League MVP Will Miss Season with A Torn ACL
The Atlanta Braves season could go downhill from here, as they are left without their former, and reigning National League MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. who completely tore his anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during the first inning of the Braves final game of a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and now will miss the rest of the season. Although Atlanta won 8-1, the loss of Acuña Jr. is certainly a low blow and could hurt the team’s progress of recapturing the NL East division against the dangerous Philadelphia Phillies. Atlanta is 30-20, six games behind the Phillies for first place in the division. It’s now up to the Braves to decide if they are capable of clinching a playoff spot and fighting through without their best player, or sink and have a collapsing season.
Acuña Jr. played in 49 games this season. In 192 at-bats the former National League MVP recorded 48 hits, four home runs, 15 RBIs, and 16 stolen bases with a .250 batting average. During his 2023 MVP season, Acuña Jr. put up 217 hits, 41 home runs, 106 RBIs, and 73 stolen bases with a .337 batting average. While he wasn’t on track to put up another MVP-type season, the Braves outfielder will certainly be missed by the team and will hope to recover back to 100 percent as soon as possible so he can keep Atlanta contending either next season or 2026.
Braves manager Brian Snitker said, “I hate it for the young men that it affects more than us. These guys love to play the game. When something like this happens, I hate it.” Acuña Jr. said, “I saw the catcher throwing the ball back to the pitcher very slow. I was timing that so I could steal third, but in that moment, he threw it hard. So I had to come back, and that’s when I felt it.” How will the Atlanta Braves continue the 2024 regular season, will they sink or contend?
