Acuña activated before Braves' opener with Mets tonight
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ATLANTA -- Ronald Acuña Jr. is returning to the Braves determined to finish an injury-plagued season strong.
The Braves activated Acuña from the 10-day injured list on Monday ahead of the club’s series opener against the Mets at Citi Field, optioning outfielder Brewer Hicklen to Triple-A Gwinnett in a corresponding move.
Acuña has hit .251 with seven homers, 15 stolen bases and a .793 OPS over 53 games this year. The Braves right fielder missed a little more than two weeks after initially straining his left hamstring on May 2. He returned on May 19 and produced an .893 OPS over 19 games before aggravating the hamstring strain on June 9.
Acuña went 6-for-26 with a home run over the nine rehab games he played for Triple-A Gwinnett and the FCL Braves. Nine of the 16 balls the 2023 NL MVP put in play for Gwinnett had an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher.