Ever since Ronald Acuña Jr. made his MLB debut for the Atlanta Braves back in 2018, he has been described as a one-of-a-kind talent. Former Braves outfielder and current broadcaster Jeff Francoeur has went as far to say that Acuña may be the most talented player to ever don an Atlanta uniform. With that organization's rich history, that is high praise.
Seeing players of Acuña's caliber on struggling teams can be frustrating to watch. Although the Braves have racked up NL East division titles and one World Series in the time Acuña has been with the franchise, the results remain below the organization's standards, especially so far this season. Naturally, this has fans speculating about Acuña's future and making the case that he deserves to be in a better situation.
Despite the occasional drama between he and his manager, Brian Snitker, Acuña has consistently tried to make himself abundantly clear that he wishes to spend the entirety of his big-league career with the only professional organization he's ever known. Atlanta reporter Grant McAuley shared on X Acuña's most recent comments about his team, and they were similarly glowing.
Ronald Acuña Jr. said this about the #Braves today: https://t.co/xgTUKa4FG2 pic.twitter.com/vqgEb2vtdD
— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) July 2, 2025
We have blinked and Acuña is now 27 years of age and just two short seasons away from the club option years of his contract. While one would imagine the Braves would certainly exercise those options in 2027 and 2028 before agreeing to a new contract, anything is possible. Especially with Alex Anthopoulos in charge.
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Acuña's love for Atlanta doesn't keep him safe from Alex Anthopoulos
A lot of Braves fans across the globe likely exhaled when they heard that Acuña wishes to stay in Atlanta long-term. However, this does not mean it is going to happen. Both Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson loved Atlanta as well. When their contracts expired, they still went elsewhere because Anthopoulos' pockets just weren't deep enough.
While there is most certainly a business side to Major League Baseball, it feels like in recent years, Anthopoulos has failed to remember there is a personal side as well. Knowing that he let Swanson and Freeman walk in free agency should terrify Acuña. These were two players who were vital to bringing another World Series to Atlanta but wound up being just too expensive for Anthopoulos.
We all know that 2025 has been a bust for Atlanta, but this is still a team that is built to win now. If they cannot accomplish their goals in the short-term future, we could see the front office make the decision to reconstruct the entire path of the organization. If that were to happen, letting Acuña walk (or worse, trading him before he hits free agency) and taking his big salary off the payroll would be a very good possibility. Just because Acuña wants to stay in Atlanta forever doesn't actually mean he is going to.