The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Acuna Jr. going further than dad’s footsteps
More and more athletes in recent years have added a suffix to the preferred rendering of their names ( Jr., III and so on), even if their fathers were not well known or never played professionally.
The latest to do it is Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Braves, though his father, at least, was almost famous — and almost a New York Met.
Ronald Acuna Sr. played six seasons in the Mets’ minor league system, from 1999 through 2004, part of an 11-year pro career that also included stints with the Toronto and Milwaukee organizations, in the Venezuelan winter league and, for eight games in 2007, with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League. Acuna Sr. peaked at Class AA, but not for lack of talent.
“He had a lot of tools and he could do a little bit of everything,” said Jim Duquette, who was the Mets’ general manager in 2004. “We thought he’d be a big leaguer and we held on to him for a long time.”
Acuna Sr. had excellent speed, averaging 29 steals per year in the Mets’ system, and a strong arm. Internally, Duquette said, the Mets believed Acuna could be similar to Raul Mondesi, the longtime major league outfielder, as long as he developed power.
But Acuna Sr. hit just five home runs in nearly 1,800 career at-bats in Class AA. Acuna Jr., a left fielder who was considered the majors’ best prospect before his promotion last month, hit 21 homers in three levels of the minors last season.
“The power tool apparently skips a generation,” Duquette said, adding that concerns about work ethic also held back Acuna Sr.
“We didn’t want to reward a guy by sending him to Triple-A when he wasn’t working hard,” he said. “We thought that was a bad message to send and we also thought it could be motivation. But Double-A was his major leagues and getting out of Double-A is the great equalizer. The good players get to Double-A and then the best move on from there.”
Acuna Jr. soared through Class AA, spending just 57 games there last season, compared with 485 for his father. Acuna Jr., who is from Venezuela, believes his brothers could join him in surpassing their father’s highest level.
“He’s very proud to have his first son in the big leagues,” Acuna Jr. said in New York on Tuesday, through an interpreter. “There’s three more, so we’re hoping to have four in the big leagues altogether.”
Depleted Dodgers
When the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched a World Series berth at Wrigley Field in October, the final out found the glove of their shortstop. But it wasn’t Corey Seager, their regular starter at the position, who caught that line drive from the Chicago Cubs’ Willson Contreras. It was Charlie Culberson, who was playing there because a back injury had forced Seager to miss the National League Championship Series.
Now, the Dodgers will have to win again without Seager and for a much longer stretch. Seager’s season is over because of an elbow injury that requires Tommy John surgery, and while it is easy to imagine a deal for Baltimore’s Manny Machado as a replacement, the Dodgers seem unlikely to trade premium prospects for a player facing free agency this winter. Besides, their problems run deeper than shortstop.
Consider the Dodgers’ roster for their World Series loss to Houston last fall. Of those 25 players, six are gone: Culberson, Yu Darvish, Andre Ethier, Brandon McCarthy, Brandon Morrow and Tony Watson. Five others were on the disabled list recently: Seager, Logan Forsythe, Rich Hill, Yasiel Puig and Justin Turner.
Four others had regressed significantly from their outstanding 2017 performances: Austin Barnes, Kenley Jansen, Chris Taylor and Alex Wood. Of the remaining players who returned and the newcomers, almost none have stood out. One new pitcher, Scott Alexander, has been sent to the minors, and another, Tom Koehler, has been injured.
It is fair to say that only three Dodgers players have exceeded expectations: catcher Yasmani Grandal; outfielder Matt Kemp, who arrived from Atlanta in a trade; and starter Hyun-Jin Ryu, a returning veteran who was not on the World Series roster. But Ryu, who is 3-0 with a 2.12 earned run average, landed on the disabled list after straining his groin Wednesday.
So while injuries have been a factor for the Dodgers, collective underperformance has mattered more. The Arizona Diamondbacks have also dealt with injuries — to Jake Lamb, Robbie Ray, Steven Souza Jr. and Taijuan Walker — and they still have the NL’s best record.