ATLANTA -- Ronald Acuña Jr. will be used primarily as a right fielder when he returns to the Braves’ lineup. But there’s no guarantee that he will be activated from the injured list before Atlanta concludes its current homestand Thursday afternoon.
“He’s still got some days ahead of him,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “We just want to make sure he doesn’t have to try to figure it out or struggle up here. We’ve seen that with guys, right? It’s tough to have patience because these guys move the needle. A guy like Acuña is an aircraft carrier. He moves the needle for our team. But we have to use good judgment there.”
Having scored six or more runs in each of the first three games back from the All-Star break should lessen the pressure to activate Acuña too soon. So, too should the results Drake Baldwin, Ha-Seong Kim and Acuña have experienced after coming off injured list stints earlier this year. Baldwin struggled for two weeks after playing just one rehab game and Kim hit .068 (5-for-73) after he played a little more than a week of games following offseason right middle finger surgery.
Acuña and Kim continued their respective rehab assignments with Triple-A Gwinnett against Toledo on Sunday afternoon.
Acuña went 0-for-2 with a sacrifice fly and a walk. The 2023 NL MVP went 1-for-7 with a homer while playing three rehab games for the Rookie-level FCL Braves this week. He has gone 1-for-5 in two games with Gwinnett.
The Braves continue to show caution with Acuña, who has strained his left hamstring twice this year. He served as the designated hitter in each of his first four rehab games, but he was used as a right fielder on Sunday.
Weiss said the plan is for Acuña to primarily be used in right when he returns. But there could be days when he could be used as the DH, especially when Baldwin is behind the plate.
Kim missed the season’s first six weeks while recovering from offseason surgery to repair a torn tendon in his right middle finger. He was placed back on the IL on July 4 and began this rehab assignment last Monday. His 20-day assignment will expire on Aug. 1, just ahead of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline.