Ronald José Acuña Blanco Jr., a Venezuelan professional baseball outfielder with the Major League Baseball (MLB) Atlanta Braves, was born on December 18, 1997. Acuña signed as an international free agent with the Braves in 2014, and in 2018 he made his Major League debut, winning the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
Acuña has been a member of the MLB All-Star team four times since 2018, has taken home three Silver Slugger Awards, and has twice led the league in stolen bases. He achieved a number of firsts in the 2023 season, including becoming the first MLB player to complete a 40–70 season and becoming the sixth member of the 40–40 club. He also set a modern-era franchise record for stolen bases with 73. The National League Most Valuable Player title for 2023 went to Acuña.
In July 2014, Acuña signed a $100,000 contract as an international free agent with the Atlanta Braves.[1][2] 2015 saw him make his major league debut with the Gulf Coast Braves before he was sent to the Danville Braves for that season. Between the two clubs, he batted.269 in 55 games, driving in 18 runs, stealing 16 bases, and hitting four home runs.
Affected by an injury, he played in just 42 games overall in 2016[3], slashing.312/.392/.429 with four home runs and 19 RBIs between the Gulf Coast Braves and Rome Braves.[4][5] He was an Australian Baseball League All-Star and played with the Melbourne Aces after the season.[6] At the beginning of the 2017 season, Acuña appeared in his first Grapefruit League games as an extra.
He was promoted to the Mississippi Braves of the Class AA Southern League after starting the season with the Florida Fire Frogs of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League.[8] Acuña was one of three members of the World Team to play the entire game after being selected for the All-Star Futures Game roster in July.[9] Right after the All-Star break, he reported to the Gwinnett Braves of the Class AAA International League.[10] In his second at-bat, he launched an opposite-field home run against the Charlotte Knights to mark his International League debut.[11] Acuña played in 139 games this season, slugging.325/.374,.522, with 21 home runs, 82 RBIs, and 44 stolen bases.
