Ronald Acuña Jr. In Homestretch Of Return to Braves

The Atlanta Braves officially announced on Tuesday that Ronald Acuña Jr. would begin his rehab assignment. He'll start off down in the complex league in North Port, Fla.

He'll be batting and playing in the outfield with no set timeline for his rehab. This will be part one of two levels of the minor leagues that Acuña will play at before making his return to the Majors.

There is no specific timeline for him yet. Whenever the Braves think he is ready to progress further, they'll move him forward.

“It’ll be a day-to-day thing there too,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “They’ll reevaluate him again like anybody the day after and see how he feels, but it’ll just be good to get him running around in the outfield again.”

In theory, he could still make it back in May, when he was projected to return. However, with the Braves being cautious, it wouldn't surprising if it took a bit long than that. For what it's worth, the start of his rehab assignment is around the time it was projected to be.

Acuña has been out for nearly a year due to an ACL tear in his left knee. He’s now had the injury and procedure in both knees, so the Braves are being as cautious as they can to ensure he comes back fully healthy and able to play at full strength. 

The 2023 National League MVP is expected to cut down his activity on the basepaths in order to stay healthy. Expect fewer stolen bases going forward. In his last healthy season, he stole 73 bags. If he cuts down on base stealing, by his standards, we could still see 25 to 30 a year. If it means having his elite bat in the lineup day in and day out - he's hit 40-plus home runs in a season twice - it's worth keeping him at first more often.

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