Did anyone actually see Acunas Hr last night? It was an absolute bomb to right center over a 17ft wall
Get off my lawn!
50PoundHead (07-25-2017), bravesfanforlife88 (07-25-2017), DaneHill (07-25-2017), Garmel (07-25-2017), Tapate50 (07-25-2017), UNCBlue012 (07-25-2017)
Acuna is insane. So what happens with the outfield when he's ready? Markakis traded?
BoneThrower (07-25-2017), cajunrevenge (07-25-2017), CyYoung31 (07-25-2017), Hudson2 (07-25-2017), Julio3000 (07-25-2017), Preacher (07-25-2017), smootness (07-25-2017), UNCBlue012 (07-25-2017)
I wonder if anyone would want Markakis at the deadline for next-to-nothing. Braves would probably have to send some money along because of that darn fourth year on his contract. I'm guessing that Acuna is probably an early-2018 call-up if it's status quo in terms of personnel.
clvclv (07-25-2017)
I watched it a few times. it first looked like he caught it at the end of the bat.. but I slowed it down and it was the barrel at the end. I don't think it was completely flush though. What is cool, is watching how long he waited before swinging. Then his bat just exploded through the zone.
I don't know if he was trying to go to right or that he was looking for something else then just reacted to the fastball, which was only 86 mph.. Maybe at that speed, it was a hanging slider.. hard to tell on the video. what ever it was, he waited back and put a very good swing on the ball.
Coppy
Here's my issue on Acuna....
Let's just say he's Bryce Harper. Bryce Harper came up super young like Acuna and was a good player. But he had issues being so young. Now the Nats are only going to get 3 years of super stud play for him before he makes stupid money. I don't get how that path is great for ATL. I'm not a service time snob, but it seems logical that an extra year of Acuna could be worth 30 plus million. If you just let him rake in AA all year then you can move him to AAA the following year.
The only way this makes sense to me is if the Braves know they can get him to sign a team friendly deal b/c he only got 100K to sign.
50PoundHead (07-25-2017)
Eh, we're trying to compete starting next year. Harper's had some growing pains, but he's been really good since he's been up. I like taking service time into consideration, but it's only once they're starting to knock on the door that I think that should be considered. Before that, just move them once you think they're ready. If they moved Acuna up solely to get him to the majors faster, then I don't like it. If they moved him up because they thought he was ready and could handle it, I'm fine with it. Now that he's starting to knock on the door, I think they should wait until a few weeks into next year. At that point, call him up when he's ready.
I wasn't that upset last season with Swanson (although I would have waited until this year had I been in charge--lucky for all here that I am not) because I don't think his tools scream game changer. I think he will end up being a solid major leaguer, but I don't think his ceiling is that high.
It's different with Acuna. The tools might not translate, but I think the service clock with him is a much touchier matter. I try to make every effort to get that extra year from him. Braves have painted themselves into a corner somewhat. They are promoting the message that they want to compete and that puts undue pressure to bring up guys like Acuna. I hope they can resist the urge.
Good lord. Kid is a ****ing monster.
For comparison's sake,
Acuna's totals between A+, AA, and AAA at age 19: .310/.364/.512 15 homeruns and 32 walks in 422 PAs. Also has 34 SBs.
Andruw's totals between A+, AA, and AAA at age 19: .339/.421/652 with 34 homeruns and 60 walks in 511 PAs. Also had 30 SBs.
In other words, Andruw was the greatest god damn prospect of all-time.
clvclv (07-25-2017)
Guys, come on...seriously...
First of all, Harper went from A to AA when he was 18, not 19. When Harper was 19 he put up 600 PAs in MLB with an .817 OPS, produced 5 bWAR, was an AS, and won RoY.
It's understandable to be excited about Acuna, but holy ****, stop with the hyperbole. It makes Braves fans look like complete morons.