Latest news with #AlexVerdugo
Newsweek
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
Braves Pressured to Dump Ex-Yankee After Ronald Acuña's Dramatic Comeback
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. After missing 162 games, the equivalent of an entire MLB season, Atlanta Braves four-time All-Star Ronald Acuña Jr. made a dramatic comeback this weekend, blasting a home run Friday on the first pitch he saw since May 26, 2024. Acuña Jr., the 2023 National League MVP, followed up with a second home run in Saturday's game, also against the San Diego Padres at Truist Park in Atlanta. The pair of round-trippers in his first nine at-bats since he tore the ACL in his left knee almost exactly one year ago obviously gave a jolt of energy to the Braves, who continue to battle back from a 3-10 start to the season. ATLANTA, GA - MAY 12: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves stands on the field during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Truist Park on May 12, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. ATLANTA, GA - MAY 12: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves stands on the field during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Truist Park on May 12, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. Kevin D. Liles/But Acuña's fast start could spell bad news for Acuña Jr.'s newest teammate, the New York Yankees castoff Alex Verdugo. After receiving no offers in free agency, Verdugo signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with Atlanta as spring training entered its final week. He got off to a quick start with Atlanta, but in May the 29-year-old outfielder has slowed down badly, potentially making him the odd man out in the Braves outfield with Acuña Jr.'s return. Now, according to the Yankees site Pinstripes Nation, the Braves will now face "pressure" to cut ties with Verdugo now that Acuña has returned — with a vengeance. "His return immediately strengthens Atlanta's outfield but creates a crowded roster situation," write Pinstripes Nation scribe Sara Molnick of Verdugo. "Braves supporters increasingly believe Verdugo should be eliminated from consideration." Alex Verdugo will no longer be a member of my staring outfield tomorrow. God is good. — Jahmal (@JahmalKennedy) May 22, 2025 Molnick added that Verdugo's relatively minimal contract "reflects his diminished market appeal. Verdugo dropped from a $9.2 million Yankees salary to a $1.5 million prove-it arrangement with Atlanta. While he displayed glimpses of past ability in April, May has revealed the same inconsistencies that haunted his Bronx tenure." Acuña Jr.'s two home runs in two games give him two more than Verdugo has managed in his entire 29-game Braves tenure. In 10 April games, after getting his call-up, Verdugo posted a formidable .850 OPS. More MLB: Ex-Yankee Alex Verdugo Nears 30th Straight Game With Zero Home Runs In May, Verdugo has compiled an anemic .526 OPS number. His sharp decline has followed a predictable formula, Molnick wrote. "Current circumstances suggest a troubling pattern emerging," Molnick wrote on Saturday. "Previously considered a valuable outfield commodity, Verdugo now confronts possible designation for assignment in consecutive seasons. Atlanta provided him a second chance, but that opportunity appears endangered." When it activated Acuña, however, Atlanta instead chose to designate 2023 All-Star shortstop Orlando Arcia for assignment. The 30-year-old from Venezuela was producing even less than Verdugo, with a .194 batting average and useless .445 OPS after 14 games and 32 plate appearances in 2025 with Atlanta. More MLB: Braves Urged to 'Pull Plug' on Yankees Castoff Alex Verdugo as Numbers Plummet
Newsweek
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
Braves Urged to 'Pull Plug' on Yankees Castoff Alex Verdugo as Numbers Plummet
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. When he was called up to the Atlanta Braves on April 17, it was a second chance on baseball life for Alex Verdugo. After a frustrating year with the New York Yankees when he was paid $9.2 million for producing 13 home runs and a .647 OPS, Verdugo had an even more frustrating free agency. The 2014 Los Angeles Dodgers second round draft pick did not receive a single offer from any team until the Atlanta Braves took a flyer on signing him for just $1.5 million with one week to go in spring training. ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 18: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves walks off the field during batting practice before the game against the Minnesota Twins at Truist Park on April 18, 2025 in Atlanta,... ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 18: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves walks off the field during batting practice before the game against the Minnesota Twins at Truist Park on April 18, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. More Matthew Grimes Jr./As if that wasn't enough of a slight for the eight-year veteran, the Braves required him to accept a minor league assignment — which he had a right to refuse, but did not. When he got the call from Atlanta, he did not disappoint. At first. In his first 10 games he stroked 15 base hits, including five doubles, while striking out only three times, for an impressive .341 batting average and .850 OPS. But May has been a whole different story completely. Verdugo's production at the plate has plunged, and with 2023 National League MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. on the verge of coming back after missing every game since May 26, 2024, due to knee surgery, the Braves are now hearing calls to "pull the plug" on Verdugo's Atlanta career. "While the Braves certainly didn't expect Verdugo to be hitting a career-high pace, the hope was that he'd be a league average bat, which would be leagues above what they were getting. Instead, the left fielder has provided the team with mostly negative production," wrote Mitchell Barbee of the Fansided House Hank Built site. More MLB: Yankees Castoff Ignored in Free Agency May Soon Get Dumped by Braves "Since his last four-hit game, Verdugo has slashed .219/.288/.260, good for a 56 wRC+. This wRC+ places him as the 13th-worst qualified hitter in baseball since April 28," Barbee continued. Put more simply, since the calendar turned to May, Verdugo has appeared in 17 games with just 13 hits and three doubles, for a .200 batting average and an anemic .500 OPS. He has not hit a home run in 30 games, going back to his final games with the Yankees last year. "There's really no contest for Verdugo being the obvious choice to cut ties with in order to make way for Acuña," added another Fansided Braves scribe, Cody Williams. Meanwhile, Acuña on his rehab assignment has simply been outclassing his minor-league competition. Between the Rookie League level FCL Braves and Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers, Acuña has compiled a .400 batting average and an astronomical 1.524 OPS. According to a Thursday report by Atlanta News First, Acuña was a healthy scratch from the Gwinnett lineup on Thursday, indicating that he is likely to be activated off the injured list Friday — potentially spelling the end for Verdugo in Atlanta. More MLB: Ex-Yankee Alex Verdugo Nears 30th Straight Game With Zero Home Runs
Newsweek
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Newsweek
Ex-Yankee Alex Verdugo Nears 30th Straight Game With Zero Home Runs
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. After a disappointing season with the New York Yankees, outfielder Alex Verdugo entered free agency — and got no takers. None, that is, until the Atlanta Braves signed him as an outfield depth piece with just a week left in spring training. After making $8.7 million in his one year with the Yankees, Verdugo was offered just $1.5 million from Atlanta, and the Braves told him he would need to start the season in the minor leagues. ATLANTA, GA - MAY 06: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves at bat during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Park on May 6, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. ATLANTA, GA - MAY 06: Alex Verdugo #8 of the Atlanta Braves at bat during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Park on May 6, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. Kevin D. Liles/With the suspension of Jurickson Profar, who the Braves had signed to a three-year, $42 million free agent deal, Verdugo suddenly found himself more than a depth piece. He has served as Atlanta's regular leadoff hitter since he was called up on April 18. Unfortunately, Verdugo has picked up more or less where the left off with the Yankees. After posting a .233 batting average and .647 OPS for New York, with 13 home runs, the 29-year-old has now played 26 games for the Braves with a .661 OPS and .264 batting average. Verdugo has yet to hit any home runs at all for Atlanta. More MLB: Braves Fans Can't Believe Yankees Castoff Hit Leadoff in Debut for Atlanta In fact, going back to his final days with the Yankees, Verdugo, ahead of Tuesday's game against the Washington Nationals, has played 28 games without going deep. The 29-year-old has appeared at the plate 123 times in that span. His current homer-less streak, however, is not even the longest of his career. In fact, it is the seventh-longest, both in terms of games played and plate appearances. In 2023, his last of four seasons with the Boston Red Sox — who acquired him in the February, 2020, trade that sent 2018 American League MVP Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers — Verdugo went 45 games and 205 plate appearances without a homer. That was the lengthiest streak with no home runs of his career. He hit 13 in total that year, the same number he hit with the Yankees in 2024. Verdugo's lack of production at the top of the lineup does not seem to be holding the Braves back, however. When he made his debut on April 18, Atlanta sat in the National League East basement at 5-13. Since then, with Verdugo playing in 26 of their 29 games, the Braves have went 19-10, raising their record above .500, at 24-23, for the first time all season. They sit in third place, five games behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East, and just 3 1/2 games out of a Wild Card spot. More MLB: Former Yankee Banished From Bronx Offers Explanation For Disastrous Season
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Alex Verdugo Facing Backlash After Costly Blunder vs. Red Sox
Alex Verdugo, since signing a minor-league deal with the Atlanta Braves on March 20, has been a fixture of the Braves' lineup. Hitting .264 with a .662 OPS, Verdugo has been a reliable presence at the plate, but has yet to discover his power stroke. Verdugo has gone homerless in 106 at-bats, putting him among the longest homerless streaks in baseball. Advertisement Verdugo, formerly an outfielder for the Yankees, has been well-appreciated for his elite arm strength, which adds value to his defense. At times, having such a strong arm can be more of a curse, and Verdugo showed why on Saturday. May 5, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves left fielder Alex Verdugo (8) and second baseman Ozzie Albies (1) celebrate after a victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Davis-Imagn Images Facing the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, a stadium Verdugo is very familiar with, Verdugo fielded an RBI single by Rafael Devers. With Ceddanne Rafaela about to cross home plate, Verdugo puzzingly threw home, which allowed Devers to advance to second. Devers would score on Alex Bregman's double, something that wasn't guaranteed with his speed had he stayed at first. Verdugo was also gunned down by Jarren Duran trying to score on a Matt Olson single in the sixth inning, but that was more a fault of third base coach Matt Tuiasosopo sending him than Verdugo himself. Advertisement The Braves would fall 7-6 to the Red Sox on a walk-off home run by Devers in the ninth inning despite leading 6-2 into the bottom of the seventh, where they had a 93.6% chance of victory. One fan on X wrote: "Shoutout Alex Verdugo for throwing the ball home on a play he had no chance on. Allowed Devers to move up to second for free and scored off the Bregman double. "Glad to see his game hasn't changed at all since he left Boston." Related: Alex Verdugo's Three-Word Message Sparks Yankees Speculation Related: Former Yankees $22 Million Bust Could Finally Find New Home Related: Braves Facing Alex Verdugo Decision After Jurickson Profar Suspension
Washington Post
18-05-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Marcell Ozuna homers for second straight day, and Braves beat Red Sox 10-4 for series win
BOSTON — Marcell Ozuna homered for the second straight day, former outfielder Boston Alex Verdugo had three hits and the Atlanta Braves beat the Red Sox 10-4 on Sunday to win the three-game series. Austin Riley also had three hits for the Braves (24-23), who moved a game above .500 for the second time after opening 0-7. Every starter except leadoff hitter Verdugo had at least one RBI.
