He. Is. Back.
After being sidelined for approximately 362 days, the most exciting player in all of Major League Baseball—Ronald Acuña Jr.—returned to doing what he loves most: playing baseball at Truist Park in front of the passionate Atlanta Braves fan base, also known as Braves Country.
Baseball is better when Ronald Acuña Jr. is healthy – Image Credit Emma Sharon/Latino Sports
Acuña Jr., the 2023 National League LatinoMVP and 2023 NL MVP, going two-for-two in the MVP runnings for 2023—followed by successfully recovering from a torn ACL in his left knee, which was sustained in May of 2024—made his 2025 season debut Friday night vs. the San Diego Padres in Atlanta.
And on the very first pitch he saw after missing a full season, 162 games on the dot, the superstar from La Sabana, Venezuela pounded a 93-MPH four-seam fastball from Padres’ right-hander Nick Pivetta 467 feet to deep left-center field. A lead-off solo-blast in the home frame of the first inning.
Storybook to some, but for Acuña Jr., just the start he sought out and wished for during his nauseating rehab process where he was itching to get back on the diamond alongside his Braves teammates.
“I had a feeling in the sense where I had mentioned to my brothers that I was hoping or thinking I might homer,” he said of his lead-off home run after the 2-1 loss to San Diego. “But I didn’t want to just focus too much on that. I wanted the game to just flow naturally and for it to come to see without it trying to press and make something like that happen.”
One of the most electrifying superstars in the game Ronald Acuña Jr. won the NL LatinoMVP and NL MVP in 2023 after recording 41 home runs and 73 stolen bases – Image Credit Emma Sharon/Latino Sports
Manager Brian Snitker, the skipper of the Braves since 2016, and Acuna Jr.’s since his MLB debut in 2018, had high praise for his superstar and the most exciting player in all of MLB following Friday’s loss:
“He is one of those players that you better not go get a beer or whatever because you might miss something really cool. He’s that type of force, I think, in the game.”
Follow us on Social Media for updates and exclusive content
Instagram: @latinosportsoficial
Facebook: Latino Sports
Twitter: @latinosports
