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Wednesday’s game drew Braves’ highest TV rating in five-plus years

1. His full name is Ronald Jose Acuna, and he was born Dec. 18, 1997 in La Guaira, Venezuela. 2. The Braves signed Acuna in July 2014, and the scout who signed him, Rolando Petit, tried to sign Acuna’s dad in the 1990s. 3. Acuna's dad, Ron Acuna, played in the Mets, Blue Jays and Brewers organizations from 1999-2006, reaching as high as Double-A. 4. Ronald Acuna played in Australia in November and December 2016. In 20 games, he had an OPS of 1.001. 5. In 2017, Acuna became the youngest MVP in the Arizona
By
Aug 16, 2018

The Braves scored their highest local TV rating in more than five years for Wednesday night’s win over the Miami Marlins.

The game averaged a 5.99 rating in the Atlanta TV market on Fox Sports Southeast, the best for a Braves game since opening night of the 2013 season.

About 147,000 Atlanta households watched Wednesday’s game on average.

Many of them may have tuned in because of rookie outfielder Ronald Acuna’s home-run streak, but Acuna’s exit from the game after he was hit by the Marlins’ first pitch of the night didn’t cause a drop-off in viewership. In fact, the audience peaked at a season-high 7.29 rating (179,000 households) from 9:45-10 p.m.

Much of the audience also stuck around for the postgame show, during which Braves manager Brian Snitker discussed Marlins pitcher Jose Urena hitting Acuna with a 97-mph fastball. The postgame show delivered a 4.86 rating, by far its highest this year.

For the season, Braves games on Fox Sports South and Fox Sports Southeast are averaging a 3.19 rating, up 55 percent from the same point last season.

About the Author

Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.

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