VIDEO: Ozzie Albies Says Ronald Acuña Aiming for Unprecedented 50-50 Season
By Jerry Trotta
It goes without saying that Ronald Acuña Jr. has established himself as a superstar for the Atlanta Braves. At just 22 years old (less than two full seasons), the Venezuela native has a Silver Slugger, Rookie of the Year, and an All-Star nod to his name. Oh, and he finished top-five in NL MVP voting in 2019. In sum, Acuña's potential is astronomical, and according to teammate Ozzie Albies, the star outfielder is setting a grandiose goal for the 2020 campaign.
“He’s talking about 50-50. That’s the first thing he said when he got here.”
— FOX Sports South (@FOXSportsSouth) February 12, 2020
Ronald Acuña Jr.’s goals are DIFFERENT. ? pic.twitter.com/vknYorNB76
Talk about walking into Spring Training with utmost confidence and swagger. A 50-50 season? That's never been done in the history of baseball.
Is there any shot that Acuña reaches the feat? Considering the extraordinary season he put together in 2019, it's not out of the realm of possibility.
The young phenom came just short of becoming the fifth player in MLB history --Alfonso Soriano, Alex Rodriguez, Barry Bonds, and Jose Canseco are the others -- to hit 40 home runs and swipe 40 bases in a single campaign. In his first full big league season, Acuña clubbed 41 dingers and stole 37 bases.
#Braves' Albies on Acuña: "He’s my good friend. He always talks about how he’s going to be better every day.... He’s talking about 50-50 (homers and stolen bases) this year. That’s the first thing he said when he got here.”
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) February 12, 2020
We treasure Acuña's moxie and we are firm believers in his chances at manufacturing a 40-40 campaign, but 50-50? Let's not get ahead of ourselves.