Unfortunately for the Atlanta Braves and fans of baseball, they were forced to shut down Ronald Acuña Jr. during the final week of the season. While there was no 40-40 season, this extra time off could have given Acuña Jr. the necessary time to heal up for an important NLDS that begins Thursday.
Per Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Acuña Jr. is a full-go as of Tuesday’s workout. Moreover, Braves’ manager Brian Snitker says that his star outfielder is ‘100 percent’ for the St. Louis Cardinals series.
Ronald Acuña worked out yesterday and had no issues with his hip. Snit said he expects him 100 percent tomorrow.
— Gabe Burns (@GabeBurnsAJC) October 2, 2019
Equally important, Acuña Jr. got his feet wet in the postseason in 2019 with Atlanta. Perhaps this is why the Braves have a slight edge in terms of series odds with the St. Louis Cardinals. Currently, Atlanta is -140 favorites against the Red Birds.
Last year, Atlanta was beaten by the Los Angeles Dodgers in four games in a 2018 NLDS series. Still, Acuña hitting a grand slam off superstar Walker Buehler in Atlanta ended up the signature moment of the series.
Also, slugger Freddie Freeman is good to go; according to the star first baseman.
“I’m very encouraged going into (Thursday) that I’m going to have no problems arising at all when I swing,” Freeman said.
Altogether, the Atlanta Braves have an exciting young team; highlighted by their MVP candidate Acuña Jr. It’s important that baseball has these young superstars healthy during the postseason because baseball remains largely a regional sport. Therefore, when the eyes of the nation decide to turn on a game – you hope that the youngest and brightest talents showcase themselves for fans both younger and older alike.
And if you love baseball, you have to at least like Ronald a little bit.
