What is left to be said about the season 2023 MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. had? The 25 year-old star was healthy and the best player on a great team.
Some could have called 2023 Ronnie’s Revenge tour. He was injured and missed out on the 2021 World Series experience. In 2022, he was still fighting to get back to form and often struggled. But this past season, Ronald was the best player on a 104-win team, and was so from the first week of the season.
A look at the numbers
It is not possible to mention all of the statistics that set him apart in 2023, but here are a few. Ronnie was first in plate appearances (735), at bats (643), hits (217). He was also first in barrels (96), max exit veto (121.2), OBP (.416), OPS+ (1.012). Those numbers result in accumulating the most total bases (383), runs (149), and stolen bases (73).
One of the amazing things, to me, is he did all that while underperforming his metrics. Ronnie’s WOBA for 2023 was .428 and his XWOBA was a mind-blowing .460, and XWOBACON .493!
Reasons for success
From my perspective, there are several reasons for Acuña’s 2023 success. For starters, he put the ball in play, more of the time. Many in the game – and many who follow the game today – say they don’t. mind the strikeout. But here’s the deal. Ronnie hits the ball hard – like most of the time. His hard-hit percentage was 55.2% this season. And when you hit the ball that hard, all of the time, it is PHENOMENAL to drop your strikeout percentage by more than half. In 2022, Acuña struck out a career-tying low 23.6%. This season, he struck out just 11.4% of the time. He nearly walked as many times as he struck out!
Another reason Acuña won the 2023 MVP Award were the doubters. He was having an MVP-like 2021 when he tore that ACL. While this was not a revenge-tour of sorts, I am convinced that the doubters were motivating. Case-in-point, the series with the Dodgers in late-August, early September. Mookie Betts had a mind-blowing August, but Ronnie staked his claim to the crown in Chavez Ravine. Acuña was 3-for-4 with a HR and 4 RBI in an-8-7 win that I wrote about here. He then went 2-for-4 with a HR and two runs scored in a 6-3 win. And followed that game up with another HR in a 4-2 win. With all eyes on him, he showed out.
Finally, I believe the reason for the success of 2023 MVP Ronald Acuña is that the Braves let him play in the Venezuelan winter league. The man loves to play baseball! He got to see a lot of pitches and enjoyed a ton of success. There is nothing more valuable to a hitter than seeing pitches and enjoying success. The self-talk alone is invaluable, let alone pitch-recognition and chase rates improving!
We shall see if 2023 is repeatable, but something tells me 2024 is going to be more of the same for Acuña. Healthy, he is the best non-two-way player in the game. He is tearing it up in the Venezuelan winter league again this December, which is a good sign for Braves fans!
Ronald’s talent is otherworldly. From the moment he came up to the big leagues, what impressed me most was his ability to learn, adjust, and improve on the fly, and he has not stopped doing so. He literally halved his strikeouts while setting a career high in walks and tying his career high in homers. That’s not just an adjustment, it’s an overhaul, and his ability to do that is what I have always found most impressive about him.
I’d love to see him improve his defense, and I’d love to see him cut down on his times caught stealing, but as an offensive force, he defies description. He simply takes over.
The guy has outperformed the expectation on him and there are still people who don’t like him. He even signed the most team friendly deal outside of Ozzie. He absolutely loves being a Brave and he has shown great maturity as a person the last season. I have no clue how anyone not appreciating him to be honest.
I don’t think those people are discounting Ronald’s quality of play. The only criticisms I hear are of his showboating. I don’t personally care as long as the showboater is on my team. Jordan was transcendent but God I hated that tongue wag. There are always traditionalists who are critical of these antics even on their own team. There is something to be said for not humiliating your opponent when you’ve already beaten them thoroughly–you know, good sportsmanship. That doesn’t justify trying to injure the player with a fastball, but the hurt feelings are understandable.
Great write-up, Christian, thank you. If he stays healthy, I have no doubt that he will have another year like 2023. Snit said a couple of weeks ago in an interview, that he started to not rely on his talent but made a conscious effort to work on his game. As KC commented, he has gotten mature. We’re so incredibly lucky to have him. Extend RAJ now, AA.
Wow, it amazes me that he’s still playing Winter ball in Venezuela. I can’t image there are many other MLB stars doing that.
I look forward to watching Ronald play in a Braves uniform for many more seasons! Stay healthy and happy young man.
My favorite player.
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/mets-to-acquire-adrian-houser-tyrone-taylor-from-brewers.html
I guess this means Burnes is off the market especially with his reported unwillingness to sign an extension. I guess the Braves were not interested in Houser. That kind of leaves Cease or a FA if the Braves are going to get an ace SP. I’m guessing the ante is going up on Cease.
I’m not sure I wouldn’t mind a second tier SP on a one-year make-good deal (say Giolito on a deal like Flaherty just signed).
New thread.