Ronald Acuña Jr. to begin rehab assignment Friday

While a lot has gone right for the Braves recently as they sit on top of the NL East, not everything has. The team recently had to put Mike Foltynewicz on the DL with triceps tightness and they just recently got Mike Soroka back from his own stint on the disabled list due to shoulder soreness. However, no injury sent more shudders through Braves’ fans spines than the loss of Ronald Acuña Jr. a few weeks ago.

When Acuña Jr. went down to the ground on a play at first at the end of May, it did not look good. Any replay you watch showed what looked like a severe knee injury. He predictably went on the DL with knee and back soreness, but to the surprise of basically everyone the injury was not a serious one. The Braves have been extremely cautious with their top prospect, but it looks like his return is imminent.

While the Braves’ offense has not been bad in Acuña’s absence, it certainly hasn’t been consistent in recent weeks. This has been particularly true at the top of the order and hopefully Acuña’s rehab stint is a short one and he can provide some more energy and production upon his return.

In 29 games with the Braves this season, Acuña has slashed .265/.326/.453 with five home runs. Before debuting, Acuña was widely considered to be both the best prospect in the Braves’ farm system and had been named by numerous publications as the best all-around prospect in baseball.