The Atlanta Braves received some unfortunate news as their young superstar, Ronald Acuña Jr., suffered a torn ACL and will miss the remainder of the 2021 season.
On July 10th, two days before the All-Star break, and on a day where the Atlanta Braves got back to .500 in what has been a rollercoaster season, Ronald Acuña Jr. went down with a knee injury.
OF Ronald Acuña Jr. underwent an MRI today that showed a complete tear of his right ACL. He will undergo season-ending surgery.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 11, 2021
Recovery time for an ACL injury is typically around nine months. However, a recovery can be anywhere from eight to twelve months.
Acuña is still a young man, so hopefully that will aid in his recovery process, and we see him return to action without missing too much time in 2022.
However, it does not make the loss of Acuña any easier in the moment.
In 2021, Ronald Acuña Jr. was hitting .283/.394/.596, twenty-four home runs, seventy-two runs, fifty-two RBIs, seventeen steals, .415 wOBA, a 155 OPS+ and a 161 wRC+.
Check out his advanced metrics:
- Barrel %- 20% (Top 2% of league)
- Average Exit Velocity- 93.8 (Top 3%)
- xBA- .293 (Top 8%)
- xSLG- .613 (Top 2%)
- wOBA- .413 (Top 2%)
- xwOBA- .430 (Top 1%)
- xwOBAcon- .531 (Top 1%)
- Hard Hit %- 54.9% (Top 4%)
- BB %- 13.4% (Top 9%)
Ronald Acuña Jr. had become one of the best baseball players in the game at the age of twenty-three. He was not only one of the best young players, but one of the best players in the entire game.
To put it simply, this sucks. 2021 has been filled with countless difficulties, from injuries to legal issues to the All-Star game being pulled from Atlanta.
This is the darkest day of the 2021 season.
The Braves not only lose one of their best players, but one of the leaders of their team. It was obvious to see what Acuña meant to the team as they surrounded him to show their support before he was carted off.
Watch the video in the tweet below to see the emotional moment.
Ronald Acuña Jr. has to be carted off the field after suffering an injury to his right knee or leg. pic.twitter.com/mXrjIBAs6V
— Bally Sports: Braves (@BravesOnBally) July 10, 2021
Unfortunately, the season must go on. The Braves will play tomorrow in Miami with a chance to sweep the Marlins and get over .500 for the first time in 2021.
Hopefully, the Braves pull out the win for Ronald. It would be a sweet moment, especially since the game is against the Marlins who have a history with Acuña.
Losing a superstar makes for a hard hill to climb, but it is a hill the Braves will need to climb if they want to find any success in 2021. Hopefully, the Braves rally for their guy, string together a few wins, and find themselves back in the division race by the end of July.
Regardless of how the rest of 2021 turns out, we as Braves fans hope to see a speedy recovery to one of the bright young stars in baseball.
Remember, Chipper Jones tore his ACL in 1994 at the age of twenty-two and he returned to have a pretty successful career. Of course, we all know what happened in 1995 when Chipper returned from his injury.
Hopefully, Ronald can return healthy and better than ever. That way he can remind everyone in baseball just how special of a talent he truly is.
Get well soon Ronnie. Braves country cannot wait to see what you will accomplish in 2022 and beyond.