Our first introduction to Ronald Acuna was a road trip to Rome on the first weekend of 2016. We were excited to see the many prospects on the team, but having heard Acuna’s name and some of the reports thrown around about him, perhaps none garnered quite the intrigue he did. As a low-profile signing coming out of Venezuela in 2014 there was little information on Acuna, but his statistics as a 17 year old in GCL and Danville were phenomenal. He posted an .818 OPS and went 16/20 on stolen bases in 55 games, yet reports ran even wilder as to just how good he was/could be. He was touted nearly immediately as a 5 tool player, and it took very little time for him to display all 5 tools. On the first swing he took, Eric, Gaurav, and I looked at each other and all knew we were seeing something special. A thumb injury dampened 2016 somewhat for Acuna, but he still posted an .821 OPS and 14 stolen bases in 42 games as one of the youngest players in the league. Every peripheral (15.6% K rate, 10.8% BB rate) and every report agreed on just how good Acuna was. Despite playing less than 10 career games Acuna is already cracking any respectable top 100 prospects list in baseball.
Ronald Acuna
Level: Class A - Rome Braves
Position: Center Field
6’0" 180 lbs
Born: 12/18/1997 La Guaira
Signed: 2014
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Acuna is listed at 6’0 180 lbs, though with those being his signing measurements it seems clear to me that he is a bit heavier than that. He is a lean weight athletic body and doesn’t project to fill out his frame as much as many players his age would, though given his current build it’s unlikely he needs to fill out anymore.
Links
Hit/Power
Acuna swings hard, and the first thing you’ll notice about him is just how quickly he can get his bat through the zone. If a pitcher comes inside with any velocity Acuna can turn on the pitch and square it up, and he is able to use those hands to adjust so well to off speed pitches that even when he is badly fooled he can change his entire bat path and still make solid contact. He’s not just a hard swinger who is going for the fences every time either. Despite his hard swing he has such a great feel for the bat and has the hand/eye coordination to still make contact at a very high rate. He uses the whole field with ease, and still manages to maintain plate discipline and walk at a high rate. Few players have ever been as impressive in such an eye popping age in the Braves system, especially playing the entire season at 18 years old.
The ball sounds different off of Ronald Acuna’s bat. It sounds overdone, but it is true. The ball jumps off of his bat in a way few players can claim, and that power holds true to all sides of the field. On one occasion in 2016, Acuna took a fastball on the lower outside corner, and was able to drive a line drive over the fence in right field. In State Mutual Stadium, with the way the wind can blow, that is about as impressive a home run as you will see. Acuna is a batting practice showcase, but there is a bit of an issue with his ability to translate that onto the field. A lot of the balls he hits are on the ground, 62.71% to be exact, and it’s hard to showcase his power that way. For an 18 year old, this is not a hugely difficult thing to fix and is something he’ll likely work on as he moves up levels in the system. Even if he doesn’t hit many fly balls, he has the speed and natural ability with the bat to be a high-OBP top-of-the -order hitter. Future projection has him around .280 with a high OBP, with a .300 ceiling, and about 20 home runs unless he is able to change his batted ball profile.
Grades (FV/Ceiling)
Hit 60/70
Raw Power 65/65
Game Power 55/65
Speed
Acuna is a tick faster than most outlets give him credit for, as I have him at consistently ~4.15 seconds to first base, but it reasonable to expect he will lose a half grade as he matures and fills out his frame. Currently, he is a bit long on the basepaths as he’s rounding but is a very smart baserunner and rarely runs into outs. He gets good jumps on the bases though I would still say there is room for improvement, and he has taken advantage of catchers for reasonably high stolen base rates. Future projection around 35 stolen bases.
Grades (FV/Ceiling)
Speed 60/60
Defense/Arm
Defensively, Acuna could go one of two ways. He has the natural speed to easily play center field and I don’t see anyone in the system with the ability to push him off the position until he reaches Inciarte at Atlanta, but whether he will project as an average center fielder or an easy plus to perhaps gold glove caliber guy will come down to how well he can improve his route running. At times he flashes immense talent in the outfield, getting incredible jumps on fly balls and running down hits I didn’t think he had a chance to get to, but at others he can be a bit adventurous to watch. He takes some winding paths on balls he seems to have good beats on, and though he often manages to track them down it will limit his overall defensive ceiling if he can’t improve on his routes. This displays itself most often on balls behind him. Even if he moves off of center field he has enough arm to play right field and would be a well above average defender there.
Grades (FV/Ceiling)
Defense 50/60
Arm 55/55
Overall future Grade (FV/Ceiling) 60/70+
Players who develop the type of all around skill set Acuna projects to have are very good baseball players. Typical players in this category are multiple-time all stars, and if he can reach his potential we’re discussing a perennial all star. For a rough projection the name that comes to mind is Carlos Gomez, although I doubt Acuna ever bat flips a fly ball to the warning track. Acuna is the potential cornerstone offensive player in the system, and with his offensive skillset is an overall better hitter than Swanson or Albies, though positional expectation, risk, and general better defensive skills make those two better prospects than Acuna at the moment. If Acuna stays healthy in Florida this season, he stands to make a huge rise in prospect rankings where his outstanding skillset will separate him from the prospect altitude he currently resides at. With the graduation of Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson likely, Acuna should be the top prospect in the system by mid-season, or at the least the best positional prospect.
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