Braves boosted by Ronald Acuña Jr. return after ACL tear
The Braves will soon be boosted by the return of Ronald Acuña Jr., who played in the minor leagues on Tuesday.
Ronald Acuña Jr. claimed he feels better than he ever has after returning from an ACL tear for the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers.
The two-time All-Star suffered the serious knee injury last July and missed the Atlanta Braves’ run to the World Series title.
Acuña led MLB with 72 runs in 2021 at the time of his injury and has had to stay patient in his rehabilitation, also sitting out the start of this season.
But the left fielder took a significant step forward on Tuesday in his first game back in the minors.
Rehabbing @Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. is all smiles after this double off the wall for @GoStripers! pic.twitter.com/ZeMNpe0n2U
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) April 19, 2022
Acuña: “I’m healthy again. Actually, I feel I’m better than I was”
According to The Athletic, Acuña said he was “very good” and “ready to go” as he went one-for-three with a double in a 2-0 defeat to the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.
“I didn’t know if I would come back and be the same,” he added. “Now, I’m healthy again. Actually, I feel I’m better than I was.”
The Braves have made a 6-7 start in 2022 but have an eight-game homestand starting on May 6, which Acuña could target. “I hope sooner [than that],” he said.