Why the Braves reassigned phenom Ronald Acuna
Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. You may have noticed that baseball fans have been talking about Atlanta Braves prospect Ronald Acuna getting sent to the minors and wanted to catch up. We're here to help.
Who is Ronald Acuna?
Ronald Acuna is the Braves' 20-year-old outfield prospect from Venezuela who turned heads last season with his stunning ascension up the Braves' minor-league system. He is now the top prospect in all of baseball, according to Baseball America and the No. 2 prospect by MLB.com.
How good is he?
Like any prospect, it's tough to say for certain until he gets actual big-league seasoning, but by all indication, Acuna has the potential to be a generational superstar. This spring, he has been the Braves' best player by far with a .432 average, ridiculous 1.392 OPS and five home runs. He's arguably had the best spring training out of any player in baseball. It's spring, sure, but there's no denying this sort of power.
Braves 20 year old phenom Ronald Acuna hits this ball straight out of the stadium. pic.twitter.com/vGXSJhCYS3 — Donkey Hack (@DonkeyHack) March 18, 2018
Holy (expletive). And the Braves sent him down?
Correct. On Monday, the Braves officially reassigned Acuna to their minor-league camp, meaning that Acuna will start the season in Triple-A Gwinnett. This was an expected move, but it still drew criticism from MLB fans.
The Braves are manipulating Ronald Acuña's service time. That doesn't necessarily involve violating an MLB rule, but the Braves sent him down to game his service time. https://t.co/BrU9ltCk0o — Ben Badler (@BenBadler) March 20, 2018
Exhibit A on why the @Braves have been a joke for the last decade. — Obi-Wan (@ObiWan_Phil) March 19, 2018
And the Braves will miss the Wild Card by 3 games. — Patrick J. Williams (@patr1ckw) March 19, 2018
I hope uber prospects like Kris Bryant and Ronald Acuna refuse to sign contracts with the teams that screwed them during their rookie seasons over service time as soon as they're out from under their control. Just one star needed to do it for teams to stop pulling this nonsense. — Ivan Alexander (@IvanAle07782732) March 19, 2018
But why?
Glad you asked. The answer is simple: control.
If the Braves had Acuna on the opening day roster - though he's clearly ready - Atlanta would relinquish an extra year of contractual control. By keeping Acuna in the minors until at least April 13, the Braves delay Acuna's free agency by a year. It's a move solely motivated by economics and not necessarily Acuna's big-league readiness. The Cubs, for example, did the same with Kris Bryant.
It's not a popular tactic from a fan standpoint, but Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos said he's prepared to handle the criticism.
Via AJC:
"That's part of the game. You're going to get criticized in these jobs no matter what you do," Anthopoulos said after the announcement that Acuna was reassigned to minor league camp. "One way or the other, we have to do what feels right, what's the right path and right development path for the player. In the long run, that's what's going to carry the day."
When can we expect to see Acuna in the majors?
Technically, the earliest the Braves will promote Acuna and secure that extra year would be April 13. Atlanta is on the road for a weekend series against the Cubs. The Braves return to Atlanta for a seven-game homestand on April 16. They would likely prefer to have Acuna make his big-league debut in front of a home crowd to maximize the buzz.
You can read more from USA TODAY Sports.
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