The Atlanta Braves announced that Ronald Acuna Jr. will participate in this year’s Home Run Derby in Atlanta.
Ronald Acuna Jr. is one of the true superstars of the game. Since his return from a torn MCL on May 23rd, he has looked like the MVP from two years ago.
Ronald Acuna Jr.’s Elite Performance Since Returning on May 23rd
Despite missing nearly two months, Acuna is on track to make the All-Star game through the fan vote, and he legitimately deserves it with the wacky numbers he’s putting up. I would say he’s putting up video game numbers, but I’m old, and that’s from a time when video games used to be easy. You could just set it on “easy” and kick the computer’s butt with your favorite teams. Now, you go online and play 12-year-old kids with PhDs in The Show. You finish the game feeling unsatisfied, like you wasted your stupid time, and it totally wasn’t worth it because now your wife is upset that you didn’t help clean up the kitchen… and for what? What did you get out of that? Nothing!
You get the point. Acuna is crushing it.
Please note that all stats are effective the morning of 06/26/2025.
Since his return on May 23rd (min. 100 PAs), Acuna is second in wRC+ behind only Cal Raleigh; he’s 3rd in walk rate at 18.9% behind only Max Muncy (19.5%) and Juan Soto (19.7%). His .383 batting average is second only to Christian Yelich‘s .387.
Acuna’s astounding .500 OBP is unmatched. The next closest is Max Muncy at .451. Acuna is slugging .682 since his return, which is good for the third-highest in the league. Naturally, he leads the league in OPS, barely edging out Cal Raleigh by a-thousandth of a point.
Acuna is tied for 11th in homers since his return with nine. Cal Raleigh leads the way with 16 since May 23rd, but everyone else is within reach. Four guys ahead of Acuna have 10 homers, and four have 11. Aaron Judge stands alone in second place with 12.
Acuna may have even more homers if the Braves could put together some offense behind him. It’s no surprise that he has racked up 25 walks and two more intentional walks since his return. We have seen stretches where the Braves have some of the worst hitters in the lineup batting behind Acuna. Just last week we had Alex Verdugo and Eli White in the two-hole in multiple games.
As we discussed on our most recent podcast, opposing teams probably ought to start walking Acuna even more!
Why Acuna Can Win the Home Run Derby
Acuna is hitting homers at an even higher rate than his 2023 MVP season. Acuna has a 162-game pace for 49 homers (as of the morning of 06/26). He finished 2023 with 41 dongers.*
*That was a typo when I wrote “dongers,” but when I went back to change it to dingers, I thought, “I rather like the way it says dongers and I believe you will still understand what I meant: home runs.”
Ronald Acuna Jr. has always been one of the hardest-hitting players in baseball. His Statcast page is always full of red. This season, his max exit velocity is among the top four percent in the game. His top exit velocity reached 115.5 mph. Acuna’s career average exit velo is 92.4 mph, but this year he’s at 94.1 mph. The only other season he had an exit velocity average over 94 miles per hour, he won the MVP.
Acuna is seeing and hitting the ball as well as he ever has in his career. He is entering the All-Star break on one of the best stretches of his life. His time off was spent well. He aimed to gain strength in his legs to support those repaired knee ligaments, and the work is evident.
The MVP shall plant his flag in Truist Park during the home run derby. The hometown crowd will be rooting for their guy. The park will be a theater for Acuna’s one-man show. This could go down as one of those epic Home Run Derby stories that you tell your kids/grandkids about 10-15 years down the road. You’ll force them to turn off the stupid video games because you can’t even come close to competing with them, and your jealousy rages, so you decide to make it an “educational” moment.
Then you’ll put on highlights of the 2025 Home Run Derby, and all will be well in your world again as you watch Acuna pummel homer after homer. It will bring back all of the good feelings and memories you will make on July 14th, 2025.
Then, you look at the kid, and he’s on his phone. He missed the whole thing. Ridiculous.
More About Ronald Acuna Jr.
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