Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. entered 2018 as the consensus top prospect in baseball, and he certainly hasn’t taken long to show why.
The 20-year-old rookie went 3-for-5 with two homers and four RBI in the Braves’ 10-6 win over the Miami Marlins on Tuesday night.
RONNIE BASEBALL!#ChopOn pic.twitter.com/ArqzLZHyoO
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 14, 2018
We're witnessing history, folks!#ChopOn pic.twitter.com/1nVRssxx5a
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 15, 2018
The first homer on the night was a leadoff homer, giving Acuña leadoff homers in three straight games, and four leadoff homers over the last five games. And over his last eight games, he has eight homers and 16 hits, something no rookie in MLB history has ever done in an eight-game span.
Acuña added another homer for the @Braves in the 7th inning.
Over his last 8 games, Acuña has 16 hits and 8 home runs. No other rookie in MLB history has done that over any 8-game span.#ChopOn https://t.co/UBFWCzygLM
— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) August 15, 2018
To summarize, Ronald Acuña Jr. is the youngest player ever to…
Homer twice on back-to-back days
Homer 8 times in an 8-game span
Homer 6 times in a 5-game span
Homer in 5 straight games
Homer to lead off 3 straight games
Hit 5 career leadoff homers#ChopOn https://t.co/nsLd3G45kZ— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) August 15, 2018
Acuña’s eight homers in August are more homers than the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants have this month.
Ronald Acuña Jr. has more August home runs (8) than the Tigers (7) or Giants (6) do. #SCFacts pic.twitter.com/vOgO6G5KCP
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 15, 2018
On the season, Acuña has 19 dingers, a .922 OPS, a .145 wRC+, and has been worth 2.3 WAR according to FanGraphs. This is all in just 289 plate appearances over 67 games.
Ronald Acuña Jr.
Age: 20
Games played: 67
Home Runs: 19
— David Bote Lineup Wanter (@TheBlogfines) August 15, 2018
Ronald Acuña Jr.'s 162-game pace at 20 years old:
46 home runs | 145 wRC+ | 5.6 fWAR
— Zach Dillard (@Zach_Dillard) August 15, 2018
.@Braves Ronald Acuña Jr now has 19 home runs on the season… It doesn't get much prettier than this 😍😍😍 pic.twitter.com/enZ4Gl6Ash
— Daren Willman (@darenw) August 15, 2018
This kid is special. Ronald Acuna Jr leads the game off with yet another homer. Wow
— Brian Jordan (@TwoSportman) August 14, 2018
It’s insane that two of the best players in the National League right now are under-21, in Acuña and 19-year-old Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto. It should be a fun, competitive NL Rookie of the Year race over the final month and a half of the regular season.
Acuña’s remarkable production also has played a big part in keeping the Braves atop the NL East. Atlanta (67-51) now has a four-game winning streak and two-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies.