Ruiz sporting new look in return

ANAHEIM, CALIF. — When his family and friends from his Los Angeles-area high school saw Braves third baseman Rio Ruiz on Monday, they might have thought he looked younger than he did at graduation five years ago. That’s what a buzz cut on a guy in his early 20s can do, and Ruiz got such a haircut last week after losing a bet when Ender Inciarte got five hits in one game.

“My girlfriend told me she doesn’t like it,” said Ruiz, who turned 23 a week ago. “Feels like she was dating me before I turned 21 — that’s what she said.”

But the hair will grow back quickly.

All of Ruiz’s people were just thrilled to find out he’d be with the Braves in their first interleague trip to Anaheim since 2011.

And not just on the 25-man roster, but likely in the starting lineup for two or all three games in the series against the Angels.

Ruiz has been the primary third baseman while Adonis Garcia has been on the 10-day disabled list with Achilles tendinitis, and the rookie has impressed so much that the Braves plan to keep him on the big-league team after Garcia’s expected return later this week.

Ruiz hit .273 (9 for 33) with two doubles, a home run and a .776 OPS in 11 games before Monday.

After getting five hits and two RBIs in two games Wednesday and Thursday against the Pirates, Ruiz said something before Friday’s series opener at San Francisco that showed how far he’s come mentally, how prepared he was to deal with success or struggle.

“I don’t want to get carried away with it,” he said after the five hits in two games had raised his average to .320. “I want to keep my feet on the ground, definitely.

“Anything can happen. You never know with baseball. You can be the hottest hitter in the world and then the next day you start an 0-for-20.”

This week’s series feels like a homecoming for Ruiz, in more ways than one.

His hometown of Covina, in Los Angeles County about 20 miles east of downtown L.A., is some 45 minutes to an hour from Angel Stadium, depending on traffic.

Dodger Stadium was closer than Angel Stadium to Ruiz’s home, but he grew up an Angels fan — and a fairly hardcore one, at that.

Ruiz was a two-sport star at Bishop Amat and had committed to play football and baseball at USC before opting for pro baseball.

He was a fourth-round draft pick by the Astros in 2012 and was traded in January 2015 to the Braves along with Mike Foltynewicz in exchange for Evan Gattis and a minor league pitcher.

After Ruiz’s disappointing 2015 season in Double-A, he heeded the advice of Braves president of baseball operations John Hart and “took ownership of his career” by diving into a much more rigorous offseason workout and diet regimen.

Ruiz went from a self-described “fat” 240 pounds to his current leaner but stronger 220, and repaired his prospect status with a strong Triple-A season in 2016 that earned him a brief September call-up.

Now he’s in the big leagues with a chance to show the Braves that he’s worthy of a spot in their long-range plans.