Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. remains in game after injury scare vs. Astros

It appeared that as Acuna Jr. slid to make the catch in right field, the ball came down and struck him in the right knee. Braves writer David O’Brien of The Athletic had more detail:

“Acuna missed a sliding-catch attempt and walked gingerly afterward, and pointed to his right knee — yes, that knee — when the trainer came out. But after a minute or two, trainer headed back to the dugout and Acuna stayed in the game.”

Ronald Acuna’s Braves injury history

In July of 2021, The Braves suffered a brutal blow on Saturday whenAcuna Jr. tore his right ACL while trying to catch a ball off the bat of Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the fifth inning of a game against the Miami Marlins. Acuna was carted off the field in tears after Chisholm got an inside-the-park home run on the play. An MRI later revealed the tear.

Acuna had been slated to start in the All-Star Game in Denver and was looking like an MVP candidate before the injury. He finishes his season with 24 home runs, 52 RBI and a slash line of .283/.394/.596.

After a 2022 season that saw Acuna only play in 119 games as he found his footing after knee surgery, Acuna was fully unleashed in 2023. Unanimously named that NL MVP and putting up the first 40-70 season in MLB history, the season wasn’t without its scary moments for Braves fans.

In a May game against the Marlins, Acuna tweaked the knee and was forced to leave the rubber game of what ended up being an Atlanta series sweep.

In spring training last month, Acuna tweaked the knee, which caused him to miss more than a week before being cleared by the Braves to return.

The ultimate priority for Acuna is health. He is one of the top players in baseball when healthy. He undoubtedly wants to win a World Series with the Braves in which he is on the field making an impact. The team won it all when he was injured in 2021.

Braves’ injuries continue to mount

Despite their elite offense still carrying them to a 10-5 record, injuries are starting to pile up for the Braves.

Second baseman Ozzie Albies was hit in the foot by a pitch in the second inning of their game against the Houston Astros on Monday, and now will have to spend a stint on the IL.

All-Star catcher Sean Murphy went down on Opening Day with an oblique injury, forcing Travis d’Arnaud to assume the everyday catcher role.

Shortly afterward, Braves ace Spencer Strider was lost for the season with a UCL injury.