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MLB Makes Major Ronald Acuña Jr. Announcement on Monday
MLB Makes Major Ronald Acuña Jr. Announcement on Monday originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
You can say whatever you want about Atlanta Braves fans, but never doubt their loyalty toward superstar outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr.
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Incredibly, Acuña has a chance to start July's All-Star Game despite not making his season debut until May 23. Major League Baseball announced on Monday that Acuña, who has played only 27 games, ranks fourth among NL outfielders in All-Star votes.
Acuña had 1,140,061 votes as of publication, trailing only the Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong (2,005,630), the Los Angeles Dodgers' Teoscar Hernández (1,366,537), and the Cubs' Kyle Tucker (1,219,866).
The league's top six outfielders advance to Phase 2, which begins June 30. Acuña holds a narrow lead over New York Mets star Juan Soto (1,048,781) and the Arizona Diamondbacks' Corbin Carroll (1,019,472).
No other Braves player ranks higher than sixth at their position.
Atlanta Braves' right fielder Ronald Acuna JrDale Zanine-Imagn Images
In fairness to Braves fans, they're at least slightly justified in stuffing the ballot box. Acuña entered Wednesday hitting .396 with eight home runs, 15 RBIs, and an incredible 1.202 OPS in 117 plate appearances.
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We've seen some questionable All-Star selections over the years, perhaps none worse than Pittsburgh Pirates closer Mike Williams earning the honors in 2003 despite having a 6.44 ERA at the break. If Acuña continues his torrid hitting, it doesn't sound too egregious to consider him making the All-Star Game with roughly 45 games under his belt.
Unfortunately for Acuña and the Braves, they're still 11 games out of first place and seven games behind in the NL Wild Card race.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.