It was another week of elite performance from Atlanta’s superstar outfielder.
The Atlanta Braves completed this past week with four wins in six games. If that’s all that was known about the week, it would seem the Braves had a successful go of it.
However, dropping two-out-of-three to the lowly Miami Marlins as the encore to a sweep of the division-leading New York Mets tossed shade on what would have otherwise a sunshine-filled week.
On the mound, Chris Sale came within one out of a complete game earlier this week, but his diving attempt to field a grounder led to him breaking a rib which is incredibly bad luck for him and the team.
Sale had rounded back into form after some early-season struggles with numbers that were strikingly similar to last season’s Cy Young Award-winning campaign – and the seven other seasons when he finished in the top six in the Cy Young voting.
In Wednesday’s victory, Sales tossed 116 pitches, struck out seven and allowed only five hits and one walk. Again, what a shame he had such a freak injury.
Despite making only one start during the week, Sale’s performance was outstanding enough that it would have won this week’s Player of the Week award it weren’t the for doings of last week’s weekly award winner.
Battery Power Braves Player of the Week: Ronald Acuña, Jr.
This time last week, Ronald Acuña, Jr. was named the Battery Power Braves Player of the Week. His week was so good, as a matter of fact, that he was the National League Player of the Week.
In this week that was, Acuña, Jr. continued to show why – when healthy – he is among the best players in the game. Despite not reaching the lofty highs of offensive production he soared to last week, this week was outstanding nonetheless.
In this week’s six contests, he got eight hits in 19 at bats, good for a .421 batting average. Add in a staggering eight walks, and he reached base 16 times in 27 plate appearances across those six games.
All those times on base this week did pay off to the tune of 11 runs scored. He also homered, hit two doubles and stole a base. Oh, and he only struck-out three times and is boasting of of the best outfield arms in the game.
For the year, he has a 17.9-percent walk rate and has lowered his strikeouts to 21.4-percent. In 27 games, he’s now scored 29 runs while putting together an almost unfathomable .396/.504/.698 triple-slash with a .506 wOBA.
After another ridiculously good week at the plate he’s raised his wRC+ to 230 for the season.
Until the Braves manage to get consistent offensive production behind him in the line-up, he may keep piling up the walks as opposing team pitch around him. Similarly, with the struggles at the bottom of the line-up, Acuña, Jr., only had two RBI this week – one of those coming from his own home run.
Acuña, Jr. is doing everything he can do to put Atlanta in position to win despite the team’s abysmal 11-16 record in the games he has played this year.
He’s also playing himself into the All-Star Game in Atlanta next month – and after Sale’s injury – he could be the team’s only representative.