Carlos Mendoza is convinced Luisangel Acuña ‘belongs in the big leagues’

Tuesday was a good day to be a fan of the New York Mets.

The Atlanta Braves lost. The Mets smashed the Nationals 10-1. New York's advantage in the NL Wild Card race grew to 2.0 games.

Oh, and Luisangel Acuña proved greatness really does run in the family with an outing that would impress even his brother, Ronald Acuña Jr.

Mets fans have to begrudgingly bear witness to an Acuña's exceptionally sweet swing over the years. For the first time, they weren't on the wrong side of it.

The younger Acuña brother, who was called up recently from the minors, had himself a day in his first start at Citi Field. He made up for an early error by doing work at the plate, driving in the first two RBI of his career. With a single, a double and a home run, he was a triple shy of hitting for the cycle.

Carlos Mendoza: Luisangel Acuña looks like a big leaguer

Manager Carlos Mendoza loved what he saw from his rookie.

"He is calm, poised. He belongs in the big leagues," Mendoza said. "Not only defensively, but those are bats today, in the way the ball jumps off his bat ... I think he's just a kid that looks pretty mature."

Acuña is the 12th-ranked prospect in the Mets system. The back tightness plaguing Francisco Lindor opened the door for Acuña to get a call up. It's rare to be given that kind of opportunity in such a critical part of the season. Many a player would be cowed by the pressure and intensity of meaningful September baseball and a Wild Card chase. So far, Acuña is passing the test.

Despite the success of his brother, there have been some concerns about Acuña's ability to hit at the major league level. He definitely hasn't looked like a player lacking that ability since coming up.

As Mendoza said, Acuña looks like a big leaguer.