National League MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. is expected to be ready for Opening Day with the Atlanta Braves. This comes after a more thorough examination of his sore right knee found no serious issues. According to the Braves, Acuña Jr. saw Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles on Monday night. The outfielder will increase his baseball activities ahead of the club’s season opener against the Philadelphia Phillies.
“We expect him to be ready for Opening Day barring new information,” Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said. “It looks like irritation, but we’re going to make sure we check all of the boxes.”
Ronald Acuña Jr. Has Eyes Set for Opening Day
Ronald Acuña Jr. approached us today leaning on his bat as if it were a cane and then cracked a big smile and started walking normally. He feels fine and wishes he could play today. pic.twitter.com/e5H3vs9S8V
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) March 5, 2024
Acuña Jr. injured the knee while in a rundown during Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Twins. He stayed in the game through the fifth inning and took part in pregame batting practice on Friday. He did tell the team he could play, but also brought up his soreness and was scratched from the lineup for an MRI. The knee that was bothering him was the same one in which he tore his ACL in 2021. ElAttrache was the doctor who performed the surgery three years ago.
He missed the remainder of that season and returned to the Braves’ lineup in late April 2022. The four-time All-Star was a major player in the Braves offense that won 104 games last season. Acuña Jr. won his first NL MVP Award in 2023 after becoming the first 40-70 player (41 home runs and 73 stolen bases). He also led the NL in on-base percentage (.416), OPS (1.012), hits (217) and runs (249). He could very well win his second NL MVP in 2024 and the Braves are the running favorites to win the NL East division again.
Main Photo: © Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
