An Atlanta Braves insider shut down a rumor that star outfielder Ronald Acuña requested a trade from the team.
The Atlanta Braves are expecting big things out of star outfielder Ronald Acuña, who returned from a torn ACL last year and dealt with other injuries in the 2022 season. With spring training beginning, it was announced this past week that Acuña would be playing for Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic after team doctors gave him the okay after initially saying it wouldn’t be in his best interest. There is a lot for Braves fans to look forward to this upcoming season. But, they received quite the scare on Friday.
On Friday, a tweet began circulating that claimed Acuna had requested a trade off of the Braves due to friction between both sides Some of the claims that were made in the tweet included Acuna’s contract and his health.
In case you needed further proof that that rumor was just that, a rumor, take David O’Brien of The Athletic’s word for it. Specifically, O’Brien responed to a Twitter user asking if the Acuña rumor was true. O’Brien’s response was, “this isn’t the NBA.”
Braves insider shuts down Ronald Acuña trade rumor
Well, there you have it, Braves fans. Acuña did not request a trade off of the Braves like Kyrie Irving requested a trade off the Brooklyn Nets.
Last season, Acuña recorded a .266 batting average, a .351 on-base percentage, a .413 slugging percentage, 15 home runs, 50 RBI, 71 runs scored, and 124 hits.
This offseason, there has been countless praise of Acuña and it has Braves fans pumped. From Ozzie Albies saying that he can see Acuña returning to his 2019 form, to seeing him crush home runs to dead center field in the Venezuelan Winter League. If he can put up better numbers in 2023 than 2022, the Braves could make a deeper run into the postseason.
As for that trade rumor, Braves fans can ignore it.