Baseball’s New Wave: The Young Superstars Taking Over the Game
best A grade of 60 or higher is considered above average Acuña entered the majors with all five tools hitting for average hitting for power running throwing and fielding rated at 60 or higher Those tools were on full display in 2017 Acuña hit 325 with 21 home runs and 82 runs batted in RBIs to go with 44 stolen bases in 139 games played across three minor league levels Acuña than everybody else Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson said It’s pretty hard to explain When you watch him you can just tell there is a difference Whether you know a lot about baseball or know nothing you can see that guy is doing something right is a better athlete
Acuña has strong baseball bloodlines His uncle Jose Escobar and many of his cousins reached the big leagues His grandfather played minor league baseball So did his father Ronald Acuña Sr The elder Acuña swears he had the talent to make it to the major leagues Instead he league bounced around various minor levels never advancing past Double-A That hasn’t been a problem with Acuña Jr who his father said was more talented and disciplined than I ever was Acuña Jr also had the benefit of coming from a family filled with pro baseball players He was born with talent Acuña Sr said But the little things that you do to polish that talent he learned from all of us
Mentorship has played a large role in Acuña’s rise Playing a spring training game in 2018 against the Detroit Tigers Acuña reached first base on a single While there he started talking to Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera Also from Venezuela Cabrera grew up approximately two hours away from Acuña’s hometown of La Guaira Acuña had watched Cabrera as a child and still admires him to this day Air Acuña While in Triple-A Acuña hit a home run in each of the first two games of a series Prior to the third game teammate Rio Ruiz issued Acuña a challenge If Acuña the leadoff hitter opened the game with a home run Ruiz would buy him a pair of Air Jordans Challenge accepted And Acuña indeed crushed the first pitch of the game out of the park Ruiz delivered on his promise giving Acuña a
always kind of had pair of black and white Jordans size 11½ There’s nothing not special about him Ruiz said that We’ve relationship Acuña said He just kind of gave me advice on all the small things and all the little things to do especially once you get to the big leagues The things you need to make sure you take care of and the things you do well and do right things that will sustain your career as you move forward in the big leagues It doesn’t take much knowledge of the game to be impressed by the way the ball jumps off Acuña’s bat Just ask Cincinnati Reds pitcher Homer Bailey In the second inning of his second career game Acuña took Bailey yard He launched a slider four
