Possible Ronald Acuña Jr. replacement shows Braves what they could trade for

Just when things looked like they might be reaching their bleakest, go figure that the Atlanta Braves are back to hitting their stride. On Saturday afternoon at Truist Park, the Bravos picked up their third straight win to get back to eight games over .500 on the season. However, that still doesn't fix all of their issues moving forward.

Even with getting back to the club's winning ways, the Braves still have to replace Ronald Acuña Jr. for the rest of the season after the reigning NL MVP tore his ACL and will be sidelined for the remainder of the year. Exacerbating that problem is Michael Harris II going down with a hamstring injury and hitting that IL.

It's far from a secret that part of Atlanta's trade deadline strategy will include supplementing the outfield depth. Guys like Tommy Pham, Ian Happ, Joc Pederson and Eddie Rosario, among others, have all been floated as possible trade targets. But only one potential Acuña replacement got a chance to audition a bit this weekend: Tampa Bay Rays All-Star Randy Arozarena.

Randy Arozarena auditions for Braves amid trade rumors

In the top of the ninth inning as the Braves were blowing out the Rays, Arozarena made sure Atlanta saw what he was capable of, blasting a 403-foot home run to left field for a solo shot that would've been a homer in all 30 ballparks. This came after Friday night's loss where he still showed out well, going 1-for-2 with a walk on the night in the loss for Tampa Bay.

Arozarena, at his best, would arguably be the highest upside replacement that the Braves could acquire for Acuña. Having said that, the 29-year-old is in the midst of a down year, which complicates the matter. For the year, he's slashing just .175/.284/.325 with a strikeout in more than a third of his plate appearances but also with nine homers and nine doubles.

However, the Braves should be intrigued by Saturday's home run in the context of what Arozarena has been showing thus far in June. In nothing short of a bounce-back effort after his dismal start, he entered Saturday hitting .265 with a .432 on-base rate in June. The homer on Saturday was also his first of the month, showing that he can keep improving his averages while still showing off some of the power.

More than just the bounce-back June, though, the Braves would obviously take solace in the player that Arozarena has been throughout his career. He's been at 2.8 WAR or higher in each of the past three seasons, never hitting below .254 and never having an OPS under .770 in any of those years. The chances of a player at his age returning to that form is more likely than not.

Now, Arozarena would surely be costly. But for a Braves team with World Series intentions, that price could be worth it, especially for an everyday option to replace Acuña. And Arozarena made sure to showcase a little bit of his talents before the trade deadline too with Atlanta having a front-row seat.