Ronald Acuna was one of the better and more exciting players in baseball this spring before the Braves reassigned the 20-year-old outfield phenom to minor league camp Monday.
The move was not unexpected among many observers, for the simple reason that the Braves could assure themselves of an extra season of contractual control before free agency by keeping Acuna in the minors until at least April 14.
Still, many fans expressed displeasure on social media after the announcement and said the Braves should’ve put him on the opening-day roster regardless.
The move was made about an hour after Monday’s game and the Braves were off Tuesday, so Braves manager Brian Snitker made his first public comments on Acuna’s reassignment Wednesday.
“He showed me that he’s a really good player,” Snitker said. “He didn’t disappoint, that’s for sure. I mean, the kid came in and, it was like the same thing I saw last year when we brought him over (from minor league camp for some spring games). He’s a talented kid. He’s going to be a young big leaguer and spend a lot of time up here. When his time comes, he’ll be a fun player to have.”
Before he was sent down, Acuna led the Grapefruit League and ranked second in the majors in average (.432), on-base percentage (.519), slugging percentage (.727) and OPS (1.247). He led the Braves in home runs (four) and stolen bases (four) and was tied for the team lead in RBIs (11) and runs (eight).
Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos insisted the move was for developmental purposes, that the team wanted to make sure they do the right thing for the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball after he climbed from high Single-A to Triple-A in matter of months in 2017.
Still, in the view of many it was done for contractual purposes, and a consensus is that would be surprising if Acuna isn’t in the majors April 14 (at Chicago’s Wrigley Field) or April 16, the first game of the second homestand.
Anthopoulos added that while there was no timetable for his return, “Keep doing what he’s doing and he’ll find himself back here soon. Hopefully very soon.”
When it was mentioned to Snitker that Anthopoulos said about Acuna possibly returning “very soon,” the manager said, “You’d think. You never know. I get that, it is -- in retrospect, he ran through the minor leagues last year. I don’t think you can ever err on just getting them more experience. Like some of these guys that are first-year big leaguers, like an Ozzie (Albies) or Dansby (Swanson), they’re not going to sneak up on anybody anymore. Until you see how they go about pitching you and everything. ...
“You know, it is spring training. Probably the three places you can get stuck in this is instructional league, fall league and spring training, in evaluations. There’s a lot of guys that do real well in those scenarios. Like I say, I don’t think (more time in Triple-A) will hurt him at all. When he comes, we want him to stay here. We want to make sure this is the last move he makes, is here.”
Snitker talked to Acuna’s dad, 38-year-old Ron Acuna, on a back field at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports on Monday while they watched Acuna play in a Triple-A spring-training game. Snitker couldn’t believe how young the elder Acuna looked.
“I mean, the kid’s got good genes,” he said. “And (his dad, a former minor league player) is an athletic looking guy, too.”
Snitker was asked if there were any flaw whatsoever that he saw in Acuna’s game during spring training.
“I don’t know,” he said, “I think everybody, probably, when you look at baserunning – because a lot of times fast guys get careless. They can be even better when they’re not taking plays off, just learning that part of the game. Something that comes with experience, being aware of it. Leads, jumps, stuff like that, you can always improve on that, to where it becomes second nature. But he has all the tools.”
Snitker paused and repeated for emphasis, “He’s got all the tools.”
