Ronald Acuña Jr. spoke with the media following the 2-1 loss for the Atlanta Braves against the San Diego Padres and it was clear that while there was certainly disappointment that Atlanta was unable to pull off the win, the team was still extremely happy to have their superstar back.
Nobody in the ballpark was more excited about Acuña being back than Acuña himself and when it came to that first pitch home run, it was clear that he was anticipating it just like a lot of fans were. “I had a feeling but you can’t allow yourself to get caught up in that moment. You can’t anticipate it happening before it happens,” said Acuña about the home run. “Personally, it felt good to be out there but ultimately the team didn’t get the win and that’s all that really matters.”
When he was further asked about whether or not he truly figured that the homer was coming, he continued to admit that it was on his mind. “I mentioned to my brothers that I was hoping and/or thinking that I might homer [in the first at-bat],” stated Acuña. “I didn’t want to focus too much on that. I wanted the game to just flow naturally and for the game to come to me without trying to make something happen.”
He was also asked about Nick Pivetta’s pitch that he crushed. It’s hard to imagine getting a pitch that good upon your return to the majors after spending so much time off but that’s exactly what Acuña got. As it turned out, he was really expecting Pivetta to try to test him with that pitch. “I was looking for it and I was able to make good contact,” said Acuña about the pitch. “I wasn’t surprised because I feel like a lot of pitchers try to throw that pitch there in order to try to get it over for a first-pitch strike so I wasn’t surprised that he threw it there.”
Chris Sale also spoke with the media and he was more than willing to chime in on the moment. “You probably had a packed house with a bunch of Braves fans halfway-expecting something like that to happen,” said Sale about Acuña’s big moment in the first inning. “That just goes to show who he is as a ballplayer and the electricity that he can create on his own. That was one of the cooler moments I’ve seen on the baseball field.”
Sale continued to brag on Acuña during his time with the media. “When that ball got hit, I don’t know if I’ve heard this place that loud before,” said Sale as he described the atmosphere at Truist Park following Acuña’s homer. “He’s just one of those guys that, you gotta get your eyes on him. People want to see him play and he proved that to me with what he did tonight.”
Acuña’s first-inning homer wasn’t the only thing to take home when talking about his performance on the night. The superstar outfielder also made some great plays on the basepaths and especially in the field. Acuña looked very confident in himself physically and he stated that it was really meaningful that he was able to live up to his physical standards. “It’s the culmination of all the work I put in this entire time throughout the whole process with my legs in order to prepare for those moments to be able to react and move the way I did in those situations. To have full confidence in my legs means a lot,” confirmed Acuña when he was asked about it.
Brian Snitker spoke with the media as well and as you can imagine, he was pretty happy with what he saw out of Acuña tonight as well, despite the loss. “Like I said a few hours ago, “don’t go out and leave your seat because you might see something really good on both sides of the ball” and you would’ve tonight,” said Snitker about Acuña. “There’s two balls that went down the line where I can’t believe that he held the guy at first. This was a great first day for him but I hate this because it’s a tough way to lose a game when we did so many really nice things.”
Snitker continued to heap praise on Acuña following a successful individual return to the bigs. “It’s good to see him running around out there. I think he was running really well. I mean, holy cow, we saw why I think he’s a Gold Glove right fielder. That arm is a weapon and I’ve been saying it ever since we moved him to right field. So that was all good,” said Snitker. “I’m sure he’s glad to get out here in a major league game and get back doing what he loves to do. It’s awesome and it’s great to have him back.”
Based on the reaction that Acuña received in pre-game every time that his name was even mentioned, it’s safe to say that the fans agree with Snitker in that it’s great to have Acuña back. Acuña also enjoyed the fact that he was able to make his return at home. “Incredible to be back in front of the fans,” said Acuña.
Acuña continued to show that he was happy to be back but that ultimately, he’s still all about winning. “Obviously, I haven’t been able to play with my teammates or in front of the fans for just about a year but all that matters at the end of the day is that we lost.” The star outfielder is still very much focused on helping the team win and hopefully we’ll start to see the wins flow now that the face of the franchise is back in the fold and on the field once again.
