It was basically everything we had hoped for in terms of Ronald Acuna’s 2018 season playing for the Atlanta Braves. However, his first full season in the Majors could be even better.
Not just a common feature of the Atlanta Braves, but every year, and in every sport, there’s always an ‘up-and-comer’ or a ‘super-star Rookie’ that everyone is talking about. A player that everyone has already made comparisons with the all-mighty Greats of their sport.
And all of this literally happens before the player even takes his first swing, shoots his first 3-point shot or throws his first pass on a football field. It can be unfair and even hyperbolish, but it’s just part of it.
What I find amazing, are the players that actually fulfill these crazy and outlandish expectations. The guys that handle the pressure with perfection and go out and perform day after day.
That’s essentially what Ronald Acuna Jr. did last season, as had a remarkable stint with the Major League club when he was called-up. Acuna not only brought some much needed help in terms of performance, but he brought with him a fire and an excitement that carried over to all of the Braves players. It was truly special to watch.
He came out of the gate on fire, and never really cooled off for any length of time throughout the season – only getting better once his swing was fixed.
Acuna finished the 2018 season with 111 Major League games under his belt, posting a .293 batting average and slugging 26 home runs. The list could go on for awhile, when covering the stat categories that young Acuna excelled in last season.
He posted an OPS of .917 — around 140 points or so above league average — with a wRC+ of 143 and 16 stolen-bases, putting him at 3.7 fWAR overall for 2018. Those are All-Star caliber numbers from – at the time – a 20-year-old getting his first taste of the big leagues.
It’s been widely reported that Acuna will bat cleanup in 2019 — which should be no problem — but let me remind you of his supremacy as a lead-off hitter and table-setter for the Braves in 2018:
- 67 games
- .328 batting average
- 1.042 OPS
- 19 home runs (of 26 total)
- 15 doubles
- 45 RBI
- 11.0 BB%
- 175 wRC+
- 47.2 hard-hit%
Now this isn’t a campaign for him to return as the lead-off hitter this season, as Brian Snitker has a brand new toy in third baseman Josh Donaldson to please as well in 2019. But my point is that the fact that Acuna, as a young Rookie, was able to have so much success leading off just shows how talented he really is.
Usually it takes somewhat of a veteran or an established Major League player to set things up for a batting lineup. The lead-off spot is a very important spot in the batting order, and Acuna absolutely flourished there.
He should be just fine this season hitting in the four spot with RBI opportunities coming more regularly. So that forces the question… what kind of projections are out there on Ronald Acuna Jr. and his 2019 season?
Will his first full season be reminiscent of 2018, or should it be much better? Let’s look at a couple of the more popular projection systems out there, and see what they have to say.