Ronald Acuna Jr. made an out today. One of his hits – he had three – was an infield single. Another was a bloop double. The other was a home run, and even that was a cheapie. It only landed in the upper deck of Great American Ball Park. Have to say I expected more.
Yes. I’m kidding.
What can I say? What can anybody say? He’s really good, which we already knew. He probably won’t hit .444 – that’s his batting average after two games – all season. (If he does, he won’t just be rookie of the year. He’ll be MVP.) But he won’t hit .222, either. He can hit the ball a long way and run really fast. He’ll generate, as we just saw, moonshot homers and legged-out singles. Were he a basketball player, we’d say he’s hard to guard.
As Thom Brennaman said, post-homer, on the Reds’ TV broadcast: “The talent doesn’t just ooze out of this young man – it pours.”
Boilerplate disclaimer: Pitchers will attempt to find the holes in his swing. We wish them luck in their endeavors. Because he hit -- in ascending order -- .287, then .326, then .344 at three minor-league levels last summer. He hit .325 in the Arizona Fall League. He hit .432 in spring training. After two big-league games, he’s at .444. Going out on a limb, I’d say he bears the makings of a something more than a replacement-level hitter.
I’d also say that big-league moments – and I’ll concede that the Braves cherry-picked the softest opponent possible for his MLB debut – don’t appear too big. He singled and scored the tying run the eighth inning of Game 1. He crushed that home run today off the aptly named Homer Bailey, the Reds’ only decent pitcher. He drove in the winner with his flared double. He four hits and two RBIs in nine plate appearances. He has scored three runs. He has not disappointed.
Oh, and there’s this. He’s 20. Let me go on record as saying that he might get better.
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