Braves Report: The age of Acuña

Hey, it’s AJ Willingham the Nationals fan in for Tyler again. It’s his birthday, so he deserves a day off. His other present? The long-awaited return of one Ronald José Acuña Blanco Jr. to the Braves lineup.

THE RETURN OF NUMBER 13

Outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. is back.

It’s been almost a year since we saw Ronald Acuña in action, before he tore his ACL on the base paths against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

He’s back in the lineup today, and it’s not a moment too soon.

Help us, Ronald! The Braves dropped a two-game series against the Washington Nationals who, if they have no chance at the division, are still determined to be annoying little spoilers. As I wrote last week, the Braves need to get out of the .500 trench if they want to improve their odds for the rest of the season. The Phillies and the Mets are both sitting pretty at .600 or above.

⚾ GAMER: More on Thursday’s 8-7 10-inning loss

Not to get all John Madden, but you gotta win winnable games. Hopefully, the 2023 NL MVP will be the injection of energy the Braves need in the leadoff position.

• Acuña went 6-for-15 in 22 plate appearances during his rehab assignment in Gwinnett, with two doubles and two homers.
• He also drew seven walks in 22 plate appearances.

While we probably need to temper our expectations in the coming games, Acuña also brings a lot of intangibles.

“We know how electric that guy is,” first baseman Matt Olson said about his teammate. “MVP-caliber player. To get his energy back, and lead off the game with No. 13, it’s going to be exciting.”

One person who probably has complicated feelings about Acuña’s return: Shortstop Orlando Arcia, who was DFA’ed to make room.

NEXT UP: THE DADS AT HOME

The Braves host the San Diego Padres for a three-game series this weekend.

🕖 First pitch tonight: 7:15 p.m., Truist Park

⚾ Tonight’s pitching matchup: Chris Sale (2-3, 3.62) vs. Nick Pivetta (5-2, 2.86)

I would say Wednesday’s rainout might have helped here, since it gave the Braves the opportunity to shift Sale to the more challenging Padres series with an extra day of rest. But, like I said, that only works if you win those winnable games.

🏆 What’s on the line: In one word? Revenge. Consider the beginning of the season. I know it hurts, but try. Remember, the Padres kind of started all of this. The Braves opened the season with four straight losses in San Diego, setting them on their seven-game skid.

This could be a great series for the Braves to get back on their feet and truly wash their hands of early spring.

• The Padres are 27-21, but have lost six in a row and sit in the middle of the NL West.
• Unfortunately, they’ve been Braves killers as of late. San Diego is 4-0 against Atlanta this year.
• Atlanta has an advantage with a 15-7 home record. Padres have a losing record on the road.

🔑 A key to the game: Looking at the matchup, and the recent history here, the Braves need to hit it with the big part of the bat. (Thanks to the lady behind me at a recent game for saying that, I’ve never heard that before.) The Padres have a great record when they deny long balls, so cracking open the rotation could be the key. The pitching staff, generally very good, could be delicate right now. Their humiliating series against the Toronto Blue Jays included two shutouts and a 14-0 loss. Owie.

WHEN WILL WE SEE CRAIG KIMBREL AGAIN?

Eventually, says our dear friend Ken Sugiura. The nine-time All-Star and Braves fav signed a minor league deal in March. He’s notched a miserly 1.86 ERA over 10 appearances in Gwinnett.

“Impressive,” Sugiura writes. “But is he ready enough to compel president of baseball operations and general manager Alex Anthopoulos to bring him up and cast off a member of the existing bullpen?”

⚾ MORE: Ken answers your other burning Braves questions