It’s only fitting that more history of the four-homer variety would be made soon after the completion of an MLB season in which a record three players hit four home runs in a game.
This time, though, the four-homer history was made in the Venezuelan Winter League.
On Saturday night at Estadio Nueva Esparta, it was an Acuña who joined Nick Kurtz, Kyle Schwarber and Eugenio Suárez in the recent four-homer club. No, not Ronald -- it was his younger brother, Luisangel Acuña.
Luisangel Acuña, a 23-year-old infielder and former Top 100 prospect who made his Major League debut with the Mets in 2024, launched four home runs as part of a seven-RBI performance for the Cardenales de Lara in a 21-9 win over the Bravos de Margarita in the Liga Venezolana de Béisbol Profesional (LVBP).
According to MLB.com researcher/reporter Sarah Langs, Acuña’s incredible power display marked the first time in the 80-year history of LVBP that a player went deep four times in a game. According to the Society for American Baseball Research, it was also the first time any player in a professional winter league did so since Alberto Diaz in the Cuban Winter League in 1995.
While his brother, Ronald, is known for his tremendous power-speed combination, Luisangel has hit three homers in 214 Major League at-bats. Was his prodigious slugging Saturday a preview of things to come?
Time will tell, but the younger Acuña has now made some history of his own after Ronald etched his name in the big league books in 2023 with the first 40-homer/70-steal season in MLB history.