Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. announced on Wednesday that he will participate in this year's Home Run Derby on July 14 during All-Star festivities that will take place at Truist Park in Atlanta. Despite not making his 2025 debut until late May, almost one year after he tore the ACL in his left knee, the former MVP and four-time All-Star hasn't missed a beat and entered play on Wednesday slashing a ridiculous .385/.496/.692 with a 1.188 OPS, nine home runs, 16 RBI, 31 runs scored and four stolen bases in only 104 at-bats. The 27-year-old will be competing in the Derby for the third time in his career, most recently losing to Mets first baseman Pete Alonso in the first round at Dodger Stadium in 2022. Acuna will be hoping to become the first Braves player to ever win the Home Run Derby. Fantasy managers will be hoping his participation doesn't affect his swing in the second half.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. continues to make up for lost time after missing a year recovering from an ACL injury. On Monday night, he went 2-for-5 with a home run and a stolen base to help fuel his team's 3-2 victory over the Nets in New York. His home run came in the third off Mets' starter Paul Blackburn and increased the Braves' lead to 2-0 at the time. Acuna has nine homers, three stolen bases, a .396 batting average, and a .510 wOBA in his 28 games since returning from the injured list, and his presence at the top of the Braves' lineup has jump-started the offense. He's a top play in all formats, especially as he returns to being aggressive on the basepaths. His game on Monday showcased exactly the kind of dual-threat production fantasy managers dream of from a healthy Acuna.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. turned in a solid performance in a losing effort on Friday. The Braves fell 6-2 to the Marlins despite a multi-hit game from Acuna, who finished 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and a run scored. More notably, Acuna was successful on a steal attempt. After tearing his left ACL a year ago, the two-time steals champion has understandably been cautious on the bases since making his season debut May 23. He has attempted two steals, both of which were successful. While fantasy managers would like to see Acuna run more, they can't complain about his production with the bat. He's hitting an all-world .352/.491/.685 with eight homers, 14 RBI, 24 runs, and a strong 17.6% walk rate in 108 trips to the plate.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. said on Friday that he'd participate in the upcoming Home Run Derby if invited this year. The All-Star game will be held in Truist Park this year, so it's only fitting that Acuna gets involved. The league always wants to have a home team representative for the tournament. Acuna feels like the obvious choice given his superstar level status. The 27-year-old recently returned from an ACL injury and already has eight home runs in 24 games. Acuna has posted two 40-plus homer seasons already in his young career. He certainly appears to be a great option for the 2025 Home Run Derby.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. smashed his eighth home run of the season in a 5-0 win over the New York Mets on Wednesday. Acuna set the tone in the bottom of the first inning with a 419-foot leadoff blast to center field against Mets starter Paul Blackburn. He finished the game 1-for-3 with a walk. After missing a year with a torn left ACL, Acuna has returned to slash an absurd .390/.495/.720 with 14 RBI and 21 runs over 99 trips to the plate since the Braves activated him May 23. The former NL MVP is hitting a sizzling .404 (21-of-52) with five HRs, eight RBI, 15 runs, and 13:13 K:BB in June.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. smacked his seventh home run of the year in the team's 4-1 win over the Colorado Rockies on Saturday. Acuna's two-run shot off right-hander Chase Dollander gave the Braves a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. The former MVP also singled, walked, and scored two additional runs in a 2-for-3 day, giving him four consecutive multi-hit games. Acuna continues to make up for lost time after missing most of last season and almost two months this year recovering from a torn left ACL. He has slashed an eye-popping .387/.471/.707 with 13 RBI and 18 runs scored in 87 plate appearances since returning May 23. Acuna will attempt to continue his rampage on Sunday against Rockies lefty Austin Gomber.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a pair of runs scored in a 12-4 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Friday. Notably, Acuna also nabbed his first stolen base of the season in the Atlanta blowout. Acuna hadn't even attempted a steal in 2025 since making his season debut May 23. After taking a year to recover from a torn left ACL, Acuna has been careful on the base paths. He had been a significant source of steals since bursting on the scene in 2018, even amassing an incredible 73 during his most recent full season in 2023. While that part of Acuna's game hasn't been there this season, he's still terrorizing opposing pitchers with a .375/.458/.667 line, six home runs, and 11 RBI in 83 plate appearances. More steal attempts should come as Acuna continues distancing himself from last year's injury.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. continued his fantastic start to the season with a three-hit performance in a 6-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday. Acuna helped lead the Braves to a win with a 3-for-5 showing that included a fourth-inning two-run homer off Brewers starter Chad Patrick. Acuna, who needed a year to recover from a torn left ACL, has thrived since making his season debut on May 23. The former MVP has posted an all-world .353/.436/.647 line with six homers and 11 RBI over 78 plate appearances. However, in the wake of a second major knee injury (he tore his right ACL in 2021), stolen bases have been absent from his game in 2025. Acuna swiped a whopping 73 bases during his most recent full season in 2023, but he's exercising caution and has yet to attempt a steal this year.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Monday's 7-1 road win over the Milwaukee Brewers. He also scored twice and drew two walks. The 27-year-old superstar crushed an Aaron Civale offering 404 feet the opposite way to record his fifth long ball in 16 games since being reinstated from injury. Acuna Jr. has wasted no time reacclimating himself to big-league pitching, batting a strong .305 (18-for-59) with two doubles, eight RBI, and 12 runs scored (.999 OPS). While it's too small a sample to draw any definitive conclusions, the Venezuelan native's average exit velocity (97.1 MPH) and hard-hit rate (67.6%) would put him in the top 2% and 1% of batters, respectively, if they qualified.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. smashed his third home run of the season in a 5-0 win against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday. Acuna delivered a 428-foot two-run shot against right-hander Walker Buehler in the fourth inning. It was part of a 2-for-3 showing for Acuna, who singled, walked, and scored an additional run. Acuna didn't debut until May 23 after a year-long recovery from a torn left ACL, but the former MVP is making up for lost time. He's slashing a magnificent .367/.441/.733 through 34 plate appearances and has collected at least one hit in seven of eight games. Although Acuna has a tough matchup against Red Sox ace left-hander Garrett Crochet on Sunday, he's a must-start for fantasy managers regardless of who's on the mound.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. and shortstop Nick Allen will start Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader against the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies on the bench. Stuart Fairchild is starting in right field and batting seventh, while Luke Williams is starting at shortstop and batting out of the nine-hole against Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sanchez. Acuna made his long-awaited return last week after suffering a torn ACL in his knee last year and promptly hit the first pitch he saw out of the ballpark last Friday night. The 27-year-old former MVP has gone 5-for-16 so far with two homers, three RBI and two runs in his first four games. Although he may not run as much as he did before his second ACL tear, Acuna still has the potential to be a difference-maker in fantasy. Expect him to return to the lineup for Game 2 of the twin bill.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. made some noise when he hit a solo home run on the first pitch he saw during his season debut on Friday. It was a beautiful sight to see after Acuna battled his way back to the field from a year-long recovery from an ACL tear in his left knee. The young superstar continued to impress with the bat during Saturday's contest. Acuna went deep again on Saturday off Alek Jacob for a two-run blast in the sixth inning. He didn't do much else as Acuna finished his day 1-for-5 with that two-run homer in the win. The 27-year-old is one of the most exciting players in the game and it's great to see him back and swinging the bat at a high level.

Atlanta Braves superstar outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. made a dramatic 2025 debut on Friday, homering on the game's first pitch against San Diego Padres right-hander Nick Pivetta. Acuna's mammoth 467-foot HR produced the only run for the Braves, who lost 2-1, but it was an enormous bright spot for the club. The 27-year-old also chipped in a single to finish 2-for-4. Before Friday, he hadn't appeared in a game since he tore his left ACL last May. However, Acuna returned with a bang and will aim to regain his previous form now that he's back. In 2023, his most recent full season, Acuna slashed an otherworldly .337/.416/.596 with 41 long balls, 106 RBI, 149 runs, and a jaw-dropping 73 stolen bases over 735 plate appearances.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) will make his season debut on Friday against the San Diego Padres. The team announced Acuna's return with a celebratory post on social media. The superstar hasn't appeared in an MLB game since last May due to a torn ACL, but his return appeared imminent after a successful rehab assignment at the Triple-A level. The Braves will get a major boost by re-inserting Acuna into their lineup. The 27-year-old slashed .337/.416/.596 during his last full season in 2023, adding 41 home runs and 73 stolen bases amidst a historic campaign. He only struck out 11.4 percent of the time that year, but that number was perhaps an anomaly considering he had never finished with a strikeout rate below 20 percent before. It's unclear if Acuna can get back to his 2023 form, and the Braves may give him a little more rest or have him run less often upon his return from the injured list. Nevertheless, Acuna is a perennial All-Star with MVP upside. His return is huge for the Braves and baseball as a whole.

MLB.com's Mark Bowman reports that Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) was a healthy scratch from his minor-league rehab game at Triple-A Gwinnett on Thursday night, which indicates that he'll be activated from the injured list to make his 2025 MLB debut in Friday's series opener against the visiting Atlanta Braves. If it indeed does happen, Acuna's return will come three days shy of the one-year anniversary of his torn ACL. It hasn't taken the 27-year-old former MVP and four-time All-Star to get back up to speed, as he's gone 6-for-15 with two home runs, two doubles, two RBI and seven runs in six minor-league rehab games (five with Gwinnett). He should be ready for a regular role as Atlanta's starting right fielder, although the Braves may give him regular rest when they can. Acuna may not run as much in 2025, but he'll immediately be a must-start in fantasy lineups.

Braves Today's Lindsay Crosby speculates that the new best-case scenario for Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) is to play nine innings in the outfield on his minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday and Wednesday and then let doctors check him out on Thursday before the team activates him for Friday's series opener against the San Diego Padres at home. Per a source, Acuna is expected to continue his rehab assignment on Tuesday and will not be activated for the series opener against the division-rival Washington Nationals on Tuesday. Another option is to have him spend a week playing every day between designated hitter and the outfield and then take him to Philadelphia for the start of a series against the rival Phillies next Tuesday, May 27. Either way, the 27-year-old former MVP is getting close to his 2025 MLB debut.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. appeared in his second minor-league rehab game with Triple-A Gwinnett on Friday night and went 0-for-2 at the plate with two walks and two runs scored while playing right field and hitting leadoff for the Stripers. Acuna homered in his first rehab game in the rookie-level Florida Complex League and had two hits (one double) in his first contest with Gwinnett on Thursday. The 27-year-old played six innings in right field on Friday as he recovers from a torn left ACL last year. The Braves still have no official timetable for Acuna's return to the big leagues, but they aren't going to rush him back until he's ready to play full games in right field on a daily basis, so it could be at least another week or two. Fantasy managers need to remain patient on the former MVP, but he could once again be a difference-maker when he makes his 2025 debut.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) homered in his first minor-league rehab game earlier this week at the rookie-level Florida Complex League and was immediately moved to Triple-A Gwinnett, where he went 2-for-3 with a single and a double on Thursday in his second rehab game. Although he tore his left ACL on May 26 of 2024, it doesn't seem like he'll need many more rehab games before he rejoins the Braves' lineup. He started in right field on Thursday and is scheduled to play again for Gwinnett on Friday. After that, he could go on the road with the Stripers or move his rehab to Double-A Columbus. The 27-year-old is off to a good start on his rehab assignment, but fantasy managers may not get him back until closer to the end of May as the Braves look to be cautious with the former MVP. When Acuna returns, he'll be a must-start in fantasy immediately.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) homered in his third plate appearance in his first minor-league rehab game in the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Tuesday in his first game of any kind since May 26 of last year when he tore the ACL in his left knee. Acuna played six innings on Tuesday and will now play his next rehab game on Thursday for Triple-A Gwinnett. It's unclear how long it will be before the 27-year-old former MVP rejoins the Braves, but rehab assignments for position players can last a maximum of 20 days. Atlanta is taking a more cautious approach to Acuna's rehab than they did after his previous right ACL tear a few years ago since he dealt with soreness through the 2022 season after he returned. His numbers were down the rest of the year before he had a historical 2023 campaign. Acuna will be a difference-maker when he returns, likely in late May.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in his first minor-league rehab game in the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Tuesday. Acuna Jr. played six full innings before being replaced defensively in the seventh inning, which was part of the plan for his first game. The 27-year-old is recovering from a torn ACL, and while the Braves will be glad to have him back, they likely will not rush him given his injury history. The Braves have been targeting a return for Acuna at some point in May. Fantasy managers will be eager to see him back in the big leagues, and his first rehab game was an encouraging one.