Ronald Acuna is in a slump.
That’s not usually eye-grabbing news in the baseball world, but everything the Braves’ top prospect does falls under the microscope after a meteoric rise last season made him the sport’s consensus top prospect.
Acuna went 1-for-6 with two strikeouts in Triple-A Gwinnett’s 14-inning 7-6 loss Thursday night. He’s 3-for-25 through six games, striking out 10 times and drawing just two walks.
He was shortened two opportunities for redemption Thursday: His bases-loaded sacrifice fly would’ve won the game, but the runner was tagged out at home. With the tying run on third in extras, Acuna struck out looking on a pitch that appeared high and in.
Evaluators and fans have come to expect excellence from Acuna. He expects it from himself, and the pressure may be partially influential to his slump, according to his manager.
“I think he’s pressing a little bit,” Stripers manager Damon Berryhill said. “Chasing out of the zone, which is unusual for him. But I’m not overly concerned. It’s been a slow start for basically this whole league. The first week we played was brutal weather everywhere.”
Acuna, the youngest player in the International League at 20.3 years old, scorched Triple-A with a .344 average, nine homers and a .940 OPS in 54 games in 2017. He became the youngest MVP in Arizona Fall League history in November after hitting .325 with a league-best seven home runs in 23 games.
His rise from Single-A to Triple-A earned him Baseball America’s minor league player of the year honors, and he was its No. 1 prospect entering the 2018 season.
“My first experience at Triple-A was good,” Acuna said through an interpretor April 4. “It was a great experience. It was everything I’d hoped for, everything I’d trained for. So I think with that behind me, I’m going in ready for the season.”
Acuna’s early struggles perhaps come as a surprise after he left Florida among the most productive players. Acuna finished his spring training ranked second in the majors in average (.432), on-base percentage (.519), slugging (.727) and OPS (1.392). His 19 hits were also second best, and his four homers were best in the Grapefruit League and one off the major-league lead.
He stepped up against some of baseball’s better arms. Acuna hit a mammoth home run off Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka. He had two hits off the Astros’ Gerrit Cole.
Acuna has garnered comparisons to Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente. He's been likened to more recent stars such as Alex Rodriguez and Andruw Jones. As baseball awaits another Mike Trout or Bryce Harper, Acuna is often viewed as a candidate to join those ranks.
“I’m very proud and humbled to be compared to superstars like that,” Acuna said. “It’s amazing. All it really does it motivate me more to work harder and continue to improve and develop. I’m very humbled and honored to be compared to them.”
With such lofty hopes, it’d be easy for some to overreact to Acuna’s slow start. His manager isn’t among them.
“He’s playing hard,” Berryhill said. “That’s the most important thing. He’s coming every day to work to work on his swing. I’m not really worried about Ronald. I think once he gets rolling, he’ll get right back into the swing and get things going again.”
The recent weather is a noteworthy point. Acuna hasn’t logged a lot of time in low temperatures. Norfolk and Durham, the sites of Gwinnett’s first two series, were as much a battle against the cold than the Tides or Bulls.
“I think that was the case with everybody,” Berryhill said when asked to clarify if he thought Acuna’s slump could somewhat be attributed to the cold. “We opened up in Norfolk, and even Durham, it was brutally cold. It was tough. If you look at the box scores, we’re looking at games where both clubs are each getting four or five hits, scratching out a run, 2-1 ball games.”
The Braves can promote Acuna while maintaining an additional year of contractual control as of Friday. While Acuna has yet to get going, the team’s current left fielder Preston Tucker is 0 for his last 13.
Acuna could join the team when it returns home to face the Phillies on Monday. Or the Braves could opt to let him work through his struggles in Triple-A.
“I’m just anticipating and anxiously hoping for that call to come soon,” Acuna said April 4.
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