Tag: Ronald Acuna Jr.

Ronald Acuna Jr. found an amazing way to avoid a tag at home plate and MLB fans loved it

This slide was RIDICULOUS.

Earlier this morning we here at For The Win showed you a highlight of the New York Yankees making two awful baserunning blunders on the same play in extra innings.

Well, now we have some really awesome baserunning that also happened in extra innings and it’s a slide at home that you’re going to want to see.

Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr. came sprinting home from second on a single to left field at Fenway Park and just when it looked like he might get thrown out, he pulled off an incredible slide to score a run that gave the Braves a two-run lead that they wouldn’t give up.

Check out this thing of beauty:

So darn good.

Twitter agreed:

Ronald Acuña Jr.’s terrible Home Run Derby pitcher had MLB fans making plenty of jokes

He had some nasty cutters!

When it comes to the MLB Home Run Derby, the batting practice pitcher is arguably just as important as the hitter himself. If you have a pitcher like Dave Jauss who can consistently hit a preferred spot, it allows the batter to get a rhythm.  A good pitcher is so important.

And then there was Braves batting practice pitcher Tomas Perez who came in on the other end of the spectrum Monday night. Perez took the mound as the pitcher for Ronald Acuña Jr.’s Home Run Derby round, and it was stunning to watch how Perez approached the gig.

He was using both sides of the plate, hitting the corners, throwing some breaking balls — basically, Acuña had no chance to get any sort of rhythm at all.

You could see the Braves star grow frustrated as the round continued because Perez was all over the place. A hitter wants meatballs middle-middle or middle-in for the Home Run Derby. Perez was throwing cutters low and away.

It got to the point where MLB fans were joking about Perez providing bullpen help for teams out there.

Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. was hilariously caught unawares by the fire at the Home Run Derby

Ronald Acuna Jr. nearly got toasted before the 2022 Home Run Derby even began!

Ronald Acuna Jr. was nearly on fire before the 2022 Home Run Derby even began. Literally!

As Monday’s home run competition began in Los Angeles, the eight competitors were introduced to the crowd in dramatic fashion. And of course, befitting an event of big bombs, the pyrotechnics in the introductions were large and in charge.

While standing on the elevated stage awaiting the final round of introductions, Acuna got completely spooked by the fire going off right behind him. Not only that, Acuna nearly got singed in the process, with his quick reflexes likely the only thing saving him from a trip to the medical tent.

Thankfully, Acuna walked away with nothing but a scare. Not only that, all of the participants got spooked by the fire as the introductions came to an end too!

Here’s how MLB fans reacted to Acuna’s jump scare!

2022 MLB All-Star jerseys are each team’s uniforms but in the same color, and they’re so good

MLB finally nailed it.

After years of having its All-Stars wear their own team uniforms for the Midsummer Classic, Major League Baseball brought some uniformity to the 2021 event with blue jerseys for the “visiting” AL team and white for the NL — and got absolutely roasted for how bad they were.

This year, they found a way to blend the two ideas.

2022 All-Stars will wear jerseys that resemble their own team jerseys with their unique logos on the front, but they’ll all be the same color. The NL jerseys are again white and the AL jerseys are gray — a similar shade as the Nationals’ cherry blossom City Connect alternates — with the logos emblazoned in gold. The hats are all black with gold logos.

This look is so clean.

I’ve always been a fan of players wearing their own uniforms in All-Star Games, representing for their entire city and team. But this is a great middle ground. These jerseys bring a sameness to the squads but also allow the teams each player represents to really stand out.

I’d be a fan of these sticking around in the future.

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Ronald Acuña Jr. says he’s going to continue with Trae Young and LeBron celebrations after home runs

He’s so good for baseball.

If there’s one thing baseball was missing with its celebration game, it was crossover with other sports. We’ve seen Odell Beckham Jr. break out Cristiano Ronaldo’s celebration after touchdowns, but when it comes to baseball, there’s plenty of room for creativity.

Thankfully, Ronald Acuña Jr. exists.

The Braves star even caught LeBron James’ attention recently when he started breaking out LeBron’s signature “Silencer” celebration after home runs. But Atlanta has its own NBA superstar with a pretty sweet signature celebration. So on Sunday, Acuña promised to use Trae Young’s “Ice Trae” celebration for his next home run.

Well, the wait for that wasn’t long.

In the first at-bat since promising to do the “Ice Trae” celly, Acuña hit a 435-foot leadoff home run to put the Braves on the board against Oakland. Acuña admired the home run and then indeed did the Ice Trae before making his way around the bases. He finished the trot with LeBron’s Silencer.

The Atlanta sports crossover is going to continue too because Acuña said the celebrations will be a regular part of his home run routine.

Fans (and Trae Young himself) also liked the celebrations.

Ronald Acuña Jr. was not happy about getting hit by a pitch immediately after a catcher visit

They didn’t even try to hide it.

You’re not going to find any baseball player who enjoys getting hit by a pitch. One, it hurts. And then the adrenaline boost that comes with staring down a 90-plus-mph projectile can easily raise tensions in a ballgame.

That’s especially true when a player feels like he was hit by a pitch on purpose, and during Tuesday’s game between the Braves and Diamondbacks, Ronald Acuña Jr. had every reason to be upset with Humberto Castellanos.

In his third-inning at-bat against Castellanos, Acuña hit an RBI double and was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a triple. On contact, though, Acuña flipped his bat before heading to first.

Castellanos’ frustration with Acuña appeared to carry over into the Braves star’s next at-bat. Catcher Daulton Varsho went to the mound to confer with Castellanos, and on the very next pitch after the meeting, Acuña was drilled with a 91 mph pitch to the back.

You always try to give a player the benefit of the doubt, but in that situation, it certainly looked intentional. Acuña had words for Castellanos who also walked towards home plate to say something to Acuña (another sign of a pitcher’s intent). The fact that it was the first pitch of the at-bat, which came after a catcher visit, didn’t bode well for Castellanos’ case.

When the Diamondbacks pitcher was taken out of the game later in the inning, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo directed Castellanos to use the home-plate side of the dugout to avoid Acuña at third base.

Everyone seemed to know that the hit by pitch was on purpose, and MLB fans were tired of unwritten rules leading to another hit by pitch.

Ronald Acuña Jr. casually threw a baseball into the stands from across the field and fans were in awe

How is that possible?

It’s really difficult to process just how good Major Leaguers are at baseball. We see them hit 100 mph cutters, which is crazy enough. We see them make incredible plays in the field. But they can also find a way to wow fans just by messing around before a game.

Just look at what Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr. did before Monday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

While warming up during batting practice at Chase Field, Acuña ended his long-toss routine with the most casual 300-plus-foot throw you’ll see. Without even needing a crow hop, Acuña launched the baseball some 10 rows into the opposite stands.

He made that look way too easy.

I especially love the reaction of the throwing partner. He tracked the ball initially and then watched as it sailed way into the stands. Almost like, “Did that just happen?” Yes, it did. Acuña is that good.

MLB fans were justifiably wowed by that throw.

Ronald Acuña Jr. had the best reaction to finding out that LeBron James loved his HR celebration

Baseball needs more of this.

Baseball is simply better now that Ronald Acuña Jr. is back, and he hasn’t waited much time to show us why.

One day after Acuña fell down as he hit a 450-foot home run, the Braves star put his own twist on the post-homer celebration. And to Acuña’s surprise, LeBron James took notice.

Acuña hit a no-doubt home run in the fifth inning off Brewers ace Corbin Burnes. And instead of opting for a bat flip, Acuña broke out LeBron’s signature “silencer” celebration before going into his home run trot. Before the game even ended, the replay made its way to LeBron who shared the video and gave Acuña a shoutout.

After the game, Braves reporter Kelly Crull showed Acuña the tweet from LeBron, and his reaction was just so good. He genuinely didn’t expect to capture LeBron’s attention (which kind of says a lot about how poorly MLB promotes its own stars), but the moment was still great.

You could tell how much it truly meant to Acuña. And MLB fans loved the celebration as well.

Ronald Acuna Jr was activated off IL and Atlanta’s Triple-A team expertly trolled the Braves

Minor league teams remain undefeated on social media

The reigning World Series champion Atlanta Braves are off to a slow start this year. Maybe it’s a championship hangover, maybe it’s because Eddie Rosario is battling eye issues or maybe it’s just early in the season and there’s no need to overreact.

Either way, the 8-11 club just got massive boost on Thursday as superstar outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. returned from an ACL tear in his right knee last July.

Less than a year after the devastating injury, one of baseball’s most exciting players will step back on a Major League field and just about every fan of the sport is celebrating.

That, begrudgingly, included the Gwinnett Stripers—Atlanta’s triple-A team where Acuna was sent on a rehab assignment before rejoining the Braves.

On the bright side, Truist Park is only about 40 minutes from where the Stripers play, so surely Gwinnett fans can go visit Acuna whenever they please.

On the even brighter side, Atlanta is once again a force to be reckoned with in the National League East. Tipico Sportsbook lists the Braves at +175 to win the division, +650 to win the pennant and +1200 to repeat as World Series champions.

While those odds are already pretty short, they could seem like bargains if the Braves go on the type of run they had after Acuna’s injury last year. Atlanta finished the year 44-29 and muscled its way to a World Series victory.

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Gwinnett should be fine in the meantime. And once Rosario’s rehab stint begins in a few months all those Braves followers will come running right back.

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Ronald Acuña Jr.’s funny exchange with a Triple-A ump had him bat flipping on a walk

Never change.

We’re getting so, so close to having Ronald Acuña Jr. back in big-league action, and baseball will be better off for it.

Just look at how his rehab assignment is going.

The Atlanta Braves star is down in Triple-A with the Gwinnett Stripers to get some rehab work in after suffering a torn ACL before the All-Star break last season. Acuña, who is expected to return to the Braves in early May, hit a double off the wall in Tuesday’s game. And on Wednesday, he was back to bringing the charisma that baseball sorely missed in his absence.

I mean, the dude bat flipped on a walk.

The sequence happened during Wednesday’s game against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (lol). Acuña took what he thought was Ball 4 and began taking off his gear to make his way to first base. The problem: the home plate umpire called it a strike with a late signal. Acuña was late to realize it was called a strike and had a laugh with the umpire because, well, he’s not going to get upset about a rehab game.

On the next pitch, Acuña waited for actual confirmation from the umpire that it was Ball 4. And you best believe that he unleashed a casual bat flip for a walk.

Major League Baseball needs this man back. Fans thought the sequence was great too.