Braves Rumors: Surprise free agent fits, dark-horse trade target, Acuña Jr. plans

Braves Rumors: Ronald Acuña Jr. playing in Venezulan winter league again

In just a couple of weeks, Atlanta Braves superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. will likely be named NL MVP after delivering the first 40-homer, 70-stolen base season in MLB history. So it would only stand to reason that the offseason plan for the star right fielder mirrors what he did last offseason as well, minus the World Baseball Classic, of course.

Acuña, for the second consecutive winter, will head back to his native Venezuela to play in the winter leagues, as reported by Shawn Spralding and confirmed by Elias Saba, the president of the Tiburones de La Guaira.

As noted by Chase Owens of House That Hank Built, however, the decision to return to the Venezuelan Winter League is a bit shocking considering how things concluded for the Braves star last offseason in his home country.

"After the Braves superstar hit a home run and REALLY celebrated going around the bases in a game last year and he said his family received harsh treatment during the road game as a result. It has been known how intense these atmospheres can get as the fans of the LVBP live and die with their teams."

Following that incident, Acuña announced his retirement from the Venezuelan league... which apparently was just for the remainder of last season.

Let's hope that this run this winter in his home country goes smoother. More importantly, though, Braves fans are hopeful that playing in the league once again will yield the same results in a Braves uniform as it did in the 2023 campaign.