In a tightly contested NL MVP race, likely to come down to the wire, Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna Jr. added to his case in a big way Thursday night.
Acuna Jr. ‘s 429ft 2nd inning grand slam off of Lance Lynn makes him the first player in MLB history to accumulate 30HRs and 60SB in the same season. The Braves would go on to win the game 8-7 over the Dodgers in what could be a preview of a potential NLCS matchup later this fall.
It was certainly a full day for the 4x All-Star, as not only did he rewrite MLB record books, but he also got married in the morning as well. Acuna Jr. and longtime girlfriend Maria Laborde were wed in a private ceremony in the mountains roughly 45 minutes away from the team hotel.
The couple have 2 children together, both born in the US. However, due to Laborde’s Venezuelan Visa, Maria and the children would have been forced to leave the country at the end of the week, necessitating a quicker than usual ceremony.
“I didn’t mention anything to anybody,” Acuña said through a translator. “It’s something that I’ve had planned out weeks ahead…The kids were born here, but the mom needs to come and go. I don’t like that process. It’s really a hassle. If we go to the playoffs, if we go to the World Series, and they’re not with me, it’s tough. I want my family to be here with me.”
The 25 year old five tool outfielder is currently the betting favourite to take home National League MVP honours at season’s end. While Freddie Freeman was once in a dead heat with the Braves slugger, he’s since cooled off, allowing teammate Mookie Betts to swoop in and take over 2nd place at many sportsbooks.
Shohei Ohtani is a runaway favourite to win the award on the American League side, but despite Acuna’s historic season, Betts doesn’t appear to be fading anytime soon. The 30 year old All-Star has caught fire down the stretch, and now appears to be the only player with a legitimate chance at dethroning Acuna by season’s end.
| Name | AVG | OPS | HR | R | RBI | SB | WAR |
| Mookie Betts | .317 | 1.034 | 38 | 116 | 98 | 10 | 7.8 |
| Ronald Acuna | .337 | .992 | 30 | 120 | 83 | 62 | 6.7 |
While most of the talk last night focused on Acuna’s historic feat, Mookie showed the world why in any other year he’d be the hands down favourite to bring home the hardware with an impressive performance at the plate himself.
It began with a three-run blast in the 5th inning, and continued with a solo shot in the 7th to bring the Dodgers back from the dead and cut the Braves lead to 8-6. While LA’s rally ultimately fell short, the head to head showdown between MVP favourites lived up to the billing and then some.
With Atlanta and Los Angeles holding the best and second best records across all of Major League Baseball, voters could be splitting hairs when it comes time to cast their ballots at season’s end. With 29 games remaining for both clubs, and only 5 games separating the two, the importance of a strong finish to the season extends beyond just individual awards.
From a team perspective, Atlanta broke their single season franchise home run record on Wednesday with 3 blasts vs. the Rockies. Now they’ll set their sights on the 2019 Minnesota Twins MLB record of 307 long balls. The Braves currently feature 5 players inside the top 15 home run leaders on their roster including Acuna Jr, Matt Olson (43), Marcell Ozuna (31), Austin Riley (31), and Ozzie Albies (28).
The Braves and Dodgers continue their series tonight in Los Angeles with a 10:10pm ET first pitch.
-Kyle Skinner
Twitter: @JKyleSkinner
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.