Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. wanted to clear up an awkward situation before he returns to the team. Acuña — who is on a rehab assignment after a torn ACL — said he apologized to Braves teammates, and manager Brian Snitker, over a social-media post sent out by the outfielder in April.
That post called out Snitker for a double standard. With the team struggling, outfielder Jarred Kelenic hit what he thought was a home run during an April 19 game vs. the Minnesota Twins. He started jogging out of the batter’s box before he realized the ball wasn’t going to leave the park.
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Kelenic’s early lack of hustle came back to bite him, as he was thrown out trying to advance to second on the play. Kelenic was not punished for failing to run hard out of the batter’s box. The sequence caused Acuña — who was away from the team rehabbing his injury — to tweet, “If it were me, they would take me out of the game.”
Acuña was benched by Snitker in 2019 for failing to run out a similar play.
Acuña’s reply was deleted, but the damage was done. Snitker was asked about the situation after the game, but implied that he had not seen Kelenic’s lack of hustle. A few days after Acuña sent that reply, he was ripped by Braves broadcaster — and former player — Jeff Francoeur.
In the end, cooler heads prevailed. Acuña spoke with Snitker and Braves teammates and apologized for the outburst. He said he was frustrated he was unable to help the team in that moment. The Braves were 7-13 at the time of the incident.
The Braves have played better since then, though haven’t completely turned things around. Entering Thursday, the team sits at 21-22. Getting Acuña — who started a rehab assignment Tuesday — back should help. The same can be said about ace Spencer Strider, who threw a simulated game Wednesday. Strider is returning from a hamstring injury.
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Acuña worked his way into Snitker’s good graces following the 2019 benching incident. It helps that Acuña has performed like a superstar over his career. From 2019 to 2024, Acuña has a .288/.382/.520 slash line.
That performance doesn’t necessarily make Acuña immune from criticism, but it is hard to put a player of that caliber on the bench every time they make a mistake.