Braves Acuña's Early Run Reminding Fans, Teammates What He Can Do

Even though he's not using his speed as much going forward, he's still known the right times to utilize it.

Manager Brian Snitker has been happy with not just Acuña performance but with how he's handled himself.

"He's gonna pace himself, I think. He's gonna know when to turn it on. He's played great defense as he always does. But the bat's been really, really good."

His high level of performance is likely helping his body in a way too.

"He can't but not feel good," Snitker said. "When you're playing like that, you feel good everyday."

Fans and players alike have been given a treat early on with Acuña playing to his high level out of the gate. Even players who have been teammates with him for some time now are only getting to appreciate what he brings to the table because he had been hurt for as long as he was.

"I had never seen him play in person before," Braves right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach said. "I came up last year when he was hurt. You don't see anyone with that bat speed, the arm, the everything. Five-tool players don't come around very often. He's really special."

In eight games thus far, Acuña is batting .367 with a 1.174 OPS, three home runs and six RBIs. His first home run came on the first pitch he saw this season. It went 467 feet at an exit velocity of 115 mph. It was an indicator of what was to come (literally and figuratively) off the bat.

We've yet to see him attempt to steal a base, but that hasn't seemed to be an issue. Most people probably haven't realized it yet, because he has excelled everywhere else. If he never stole another base, this is a type of Acuña caple of chasing another MVP in the future.

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