The Braves can blame their struggles in 2024 on injuries, run it back with essentially the same group, and nobody would bat an eye. However, there are still some critical decisions to be made, and one has to wonder if three straight first round exits in the postseason might cause Alex Anthopoulos to be a little more aggressive than he has in recent offseasons. What’s the plan for Ronald Acuña Jr.
? Unfortunately, the biggest concern for the Braves heading into 2025 is completely out of their control. Ronald Acuña Jr. — when healthy — might be the best player in baseball, not named Shohei Ohtani .
However, health has been a problem his entire career, and he’s now suffered a torn ACL two times over the span of four seasons. The first time Ronald Acuña Jr. returned to the field a little over 10 months after the injury.
On that timeline, he could potentially be ready for Opening Day with little restrictions. However, Acuña learned a lot from the first go-round, and he’s already said he felt like he rushed back in 2022, when he went on to have by far the worst season of his career. That’s not something he’s going to do again, as he said a little over a month ago.
“I think going into next season, I’m just gonna try to be a little more patient than the last go around,” Acuña said . “After having undergone both of these surgeries that have obviously taken a big toll, I’m just gonna be patient.” The 2023 NL MVP also suggested the days of him stealing.