MLB Power Rankings: Top 25 players under 25

ANAHEIM, CA - MAY 17: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) hits a fly ball to left field for an out in the fourth inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays played on May 17, 2018 at Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 29: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13 of the Atlanta Braves land Ozzie Albies #1 pose for a photo before the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday April 29, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rob Tringali/SportsChrome/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Ronald Acuna Jr. /

10. Ronald Acuna

Not since Bryce Harper arrived in the big leagues has a hitter come up from the minors with as much hype as Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna. Kris Bryant came with his own hype to Chicago, but there is just an entirely different level of electricity that follows a 20-year-old man-child with light-tower power to all fields. It hardly slowed the hype train that Acuna hit a home run in his second game at the MLB level and hit close to .400 his first week in the big leagues.

Acuna has cooled slightly since his big debut week, but is still hitting a solid .253/.321/.442 with four home runs and 11 RBI in just over 100 plate appearances in the big leagues. Let’s not lose sight of the fact that he played only 54 games above Double-A ball before this season and started 2017 playing in High-A.

Rocketing up the farm system last year, Acuna hit a combined .325/.374/.522 across three levels as a 19-year-old with 21 home runs and 44 stolen bases. He is a generational five-tool talent but does remain very raw. Despite having the obvious speed necessary to steal over 40 bases, Acuna was caught 20 times last year. A star turn in the Arizona Fall League all but assured that Acuna would be up in the big leagues at some point this year.

The 20-year-old Acuna is still barely scratching the surface of his potential as an MLB star. He is having some problems with big-league sliders, but has generally shown a solid, disciplined approach at the plate. Acuna will be in the running for NL Rookie of the Year, and the sky is the limit from there.

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