Ronald Acuna Jr. has Fired a Divorce Due to his Being Inactive in Bed, she said he is actually Impotent and is unable to Impregnant a woman this has left of with a question who is the father of his child if the allegation is true could it be that..
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Ronald Acuña Jr. had a season to remember in 2023. The 26-year-old slashed .337/.416/.596 with 41 home runs and 106 RBI. He tacked on a league-leading 73 stolen bases and won the NL MVP with ease. Acuña was historically great from start to finish and will look to top that in 2024.
After an injury scare to begin Spring Training, Acuña is fully healthy and ready to roll. Atlanta’s success will be based on what they can do in October, but when it comes to the regular season, the Braves have as good of a chance as anyone to win another MVP Award.
Acuña, being the best player on the team and arguably the National League makes him the MVP frontrunner, but the Atlanta Braves have several players capable of stealing that trophy from Acuña while keeping it in the same city.
3) Matt Olson can win the NL MVP if he has another big power year
Acuña took home the MVP, and rightfully so, but in many other years, Matt Olson would’ve been in MVP consideration with the year he had.
After a bit of a rocky first season in Atlanta, the 29-year-old slashed .283/.389/.604 with a league-leading 54 home runs and 139 RBI. Not only did Olson lead all of baseball in home runs, but he set a Braves single-season record with those 54 long balls. Pretty impressive considering the fact that this franchise rostered Hank Aaron.
Olson won’t hit for the average Acuña will and certainly won’t steal bases like Acuña, but if he has another monster power year, who’s to say he can’t win an MVP Award? If he hits another 50+ home runs or even pushes 60, that’ll be really hard to ignore even if he doesn’t have the all-around stats compared to players like Acuña.
2) Austin Riley’s all-around play will always put him in MVP contention
Austin Riley has quietly cemented himself as a perennial NL MVP candidate. He hasn’t won one or even been a finalist yet, but he’s finished in the top seven in each of the last three seasons. Riley having a career year could catapult him into being an MVP finalist or even an MVP winner.
This past season was another outstanding one for the 26-year-old. He slashed .281/.345/.516 with 37 home runs and 97 RBI in 159 games. He tacked on 32 doubles and 328 total bases, three more than the 325 that led the league back in 2022. He was an All-Star, won a Silver Slugger, and finished seventh in the NL MVP balloting. Not too shabby.
Riley will once again hit right in the middle of Atlanta’s order. He’ll presumably hit third, behind the star-studded duo of Acuña and Ozzie Albies, and in front of the power bats of Olson and Marcell Ozuna. This will give Riley a chance to drive in plenty of runs hitting behind Acuña and Albies while also scoring plenty of runs hitting in front of two sluggers.
Riley has been remarkably consistent in each of the last three seasons. If he can step it up just a tick he’ll be in the conversation once again, if not a favorite to win the MVP.
1) Spencer Strider looks to be on a mission in 2024
Often the MVP Award goes to position players, but pitchers can still win it. Two pitchers (excluding Shohei Ohtani) have won it since 2000, with Justin Verlander taking home AL MVP honors in 2011 and Clayton Kershaw winning the NL MVP Award in 2014. It’s rare, but it can happen.
For a pitcher to win the MVP, he’d have to do something historic. Verlander did that when he took home the MVP Award, winning the pitching Triple Crown. Kershaw didn’t, but he went 21-3 with a sparkling 1.77 ERA. If any pitcher is going to win the award this season, Spencer Strider has the best shot.
Strider is only entering his third full season but he’s already established himself as one of the premier strikeout artists in the game. Last season he led the league with a remarkable 281 strikeouts in 186.2 innings of work. What if he gets to 300? That, with a much lower ERA than the 3.86 mark he had in 2023 gives him a chance.
It might sound unreasonable to ask for Strider to bring his ERA down by a full run, but that’d simply involve him just pitching better against bad teams. Strider struggled immensely against sub-.500 teams, for whatever reason. He allowed five runs or more in a start five times last season. All five came against teams that finished below .500.
Let’s say Strider posts a sub-3.00 ERA and strikes out 300+ batters. That has to put him squarely in MVP discussions, right? He showed off his new curveball in Spring Training and the results were outstanding, as Strider allowed just two runs in 22.2 innings of work and struck out 35 batters. Let’s see if he can carry that dominance into the regular season.
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Braves, analytics experts’ take on Ronald Acuña Jr. should terrify rest of baseball
Ronald Acuña Jr. is almost a shoe-in at this point to go 40/40 for the Atlanta Braves once again.
Ronald Acuña Jr.’s historic 40/70 season was unlike anything we have ever seen in baseball. Yes, he may have taken advantage of a new rule change to make it easier to swipe bags, but he still had to steal them, as well as play enough games to put over 40 balls into the bleachers. As long as he stays healthy and committed to playing every day, Acuña could become one of the greatest players ever.
The crazy part in all this is it almost feels like Acuña going 40/40 again is not only possible, but expected. In my conversation with Chipper Jones shortly before Thanksgiving, he suspects that his power will improve, while age naturally slows down his wheels. Jones believes that if Acuña takes care of himself, he will age gracefully, and will join him as a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.
To further back up Jones and I’s conversation from several months ago, his former teammate and noted Atlanta Braves coach Eddie Perez had glowing things to say about what is to come for Acuña in his MLB career. Here is one of the many things he told Ken Sugiura of the AJC about the outfielder.
“I think that’s what he wants, to prove that what he did last year was not lucky. That’s what he’s going to prove … Because he wants to be on the field every day. And that’s the great thing about him. And I think he’s going to be like that forever.”
Acuña’s five-tool game and staunch willingness to play every day certainly back up Perez’s comments. But perhaps even more impressive, the advanced analytics say that the cards are in his favor. Dan Szymborski’s ZiPs projection model, which he has run for 20 years now, projects baselines for players, based on past performance, injury history, age and a plethora of other important factors.
While I don’t claim to be the leading expert on all things analytics, Szymborski’s median projections indicate that Acuña will have around 43 home runs and 51 stolen bases. That would make him the first player to go 40/40 twice, let alone 40/50, as he is the only one to do so. Keep in mind Szymborski ran 2,000 simulations of the 2024 MLB season and this is the median, meaning he could be even better…
With the amount of protection around him in the Atlanta lineup, why not go for back-to-back MVPs?
Ronald Acuña Jr. may be expected to go 40/40 once again this season
For as exciting as the results of this statistical analysis may indicate, let’s not put the cart in front of the horse. Keep in mind who his manager is. Brian Snitker is old school; he doesn’t do analytics. Okay, that may not be entirely true, but the world should never forget a headline for the ages, just like we should never forget what Acuña did on the diamond last year. This is all about him staying healthy.
My favorite thing about Acuña’s MVP campaign from a season ago was the maturity he demonstrated on the baseball diamond. Immensely talented, but painfully frustrating at times. While he has been an ever-present part of the dynastic run Atlanta has had over the NL East these last half-dozen years, how he matures as an adult may decide how many more championships this core can win together.
For the first time in his professional career, all of Braves Country fully rallied in support of the franchise’s most talented player since Hank Aaron. Keep in mind Atlanta has retired roughly a dozen numbers over the years. Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux and John Smoltz starred here. Jones spent his entire career here. The guy Atlanta wanted Freddie Freeman to be is playing right field for the Braves.
He can’t do it all himself, but there is very little Acuña can’t do on the baseball diamond in his prime.
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Death, taxes and Jesse Chavez: Guess who’s back in Atlanta, Braves Country?
Not since the 1998 NFC Championship has Minnesota suffered a loss this bad to an Atlanta team.
Never made it as a White Sock. I couldn’t cut it as a poor Twin dealing. Tired of livin’ like a blind man. I’m sick of sight without a sense of feeling. And this is how you remind me. This is how you remind me of what I really am. This is how you remind me of what I really am. Jesse Chavez, you are a relief pitcher for the Atlanta Braves. Welcome back home, brother. I can’t believe you nearly signed with Minnesota.
It’s not like you to say sorry. We all knew you were waiting on a different story. With an opportunity to pitch even deeper into his early 40s, why would he want to go anywhere else? Chavez has spent the better part of the last three seasons in Atlanta. In between, he’s been on both Chicago teams, one of the Los Angeles teams and nearly a team in the Twin Cities. I am sure you are as confused as I am.
Over the weekend, we got some bad intel that the recently released relief pitcher formerly of the Chicago White Sox was going to play for the Minnesota Twins. I was skeptical of the move, since I didn’t see any major reporter back this up. Then again, I didn’t see anyone refute it. Chavez may not move the needle, but when your team has championship aspirations like Atlanta, you know the drill.
After seeing Kirby Smart’s team have a weekend from hell, this was a pleasant surprise over on the X.
The #Braves today signed RHP Jesse Chavez to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. Atlanta now has 29 players in camp.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) March 25, 2024
Here is more proof why Braves Country hasn’t trusted anything to do with the Twins since 1991.
I messed up. I’m very sorry. The #MNTwins don’t have an agreement with reliever Jesse Chavez, & it appears they are unlikely to reach one. I failed to get a more exact understanding of the situation with my sources. It is my fault & I need to do better.Jesse Chavez returns to Atlanta Braves, been far away for far too long
I have no earthly idea what kind of impact Chavez will have with the Braves this season other than it will be an impactful one. Every little thing he does is magic. Like Sting, he is a hero of mine. More importantly, Chavez has a far better chance of capturing another World Series ring with Atlanta than he did with either Chicago or Minnesota. Of course, he will have to stay with the team throughout…
To date, Chavez has pitched in games that count for nine different teams over a 16-year big-league career. He has pitched in over 100 games with the Braves and the Oakland Athletics, and nearly 100 with the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers. An outside of a semi-one-year run with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chavez has been on eight of these big-league rosters for at least two years.
The math checks out, mostly because I did the math before I had even a drop of java, so you’re going to have to trust me. Is Chavez past his prime or does he only get better with age? It really doesn’t matter. When he has pitched for the Braves over the better part of the last three years, he has pitched well enough for me to like him, enough to the point to where he needs a statue over in The Battery.
While MLB buries its biggest story of the week until after five o’clock on Friday, the Braves do it first thing Monday morning like the well-run organization Atlanta is. Welcome back home, living legend.
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Insider names sleeper team to draft Washington QB Michael Penix Jr.
Don’t be shocked if Michael Penix Jr. ends up a first-round selection by this NFL franchise.
While as many as six quarterbacks could go in the first round, I am expecting that at least five will in the 2024 NFL Draft. Caleb Williams is going No. 1 overall to the Chicago Bears. Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye are top-five locks, probably going No. 2 and No. 3, in some order. J.J. McCarthy should be QB4, but could go as high as No. 2, but no lower than No. 11. Then, there’s the two other guys…
Bo Nix could go as high as No. 11 to the Minnesota Vikings, or could go as late as the late 30s or early 40s. He is the most pro-ready of any of the quarterbacks, but he is arguably the most polarizing. As for Michael Penix Jr., he could be QB5 if NFL teams aren’t that high on Nix. Regardless, I think he is worthy of a top-32 selection. It is why I would take all six of these quarterbacks in the first round.
And you know what? This NFL insider agrees with me! Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report said while appearing on The Pat McAfee Show to keep an eye on these handful of teams to draft Penix: The Seattle Seahawks, the Atlanta Falcons, as well as the Los Angeles Rams and Minnesota Vikings as sleepers. Atlanta would have to wait until the second round, but the other three teams are all in play. In fact, Schultz called the Rams “a potential sleeper team” for Penix.
Here is a clip of what Schultz said while appearing on The Pat McAfee Show when discussing Penix.
“I think a potential sleeper team for Michael Penix is the Rams..
Kalen DeBoer said he’s one of the single best leaders he’s ever seen in his life”
It is a combination of frame, hand size, starting experience and great intangibles that will get him drafted high. His former head coach Kalen DeBoer has said he is one of the best leaders he has ever seen in his entire life. Penix is a college football legend from his brilliant career split at Indiana and Washington. Of all the teams linked to him, the Rams are the best landing spot for him going away.
Let’s discuss why the Rams picking at No. 19 overall is without debate the best landing spot for Penix.
NFL insider links Michael Penix Jr. to Los Angeles Rams as a “sleeper”
For as much as I love my Dawg Matthew Stafford, he’s not a young pup anymore. In fact, he is two years older than me, and closer to 40 than he is to 30. He may still be able to spin it with the very best of them. This dude was blessed with a howitzer of a right arm after all. However, Sean McVay will need to look for a long-term solution under center. Penix’s arm talent and leadership acumen are perfect.
Of the six first-round quarterbacks, Penix probably throws the best deep ball. These were calling cards of both of McVay’s noted Rams quarterbacks in Stafford, as well as Jared Goff, now of the Detroit Lions. Neither are great runners, which isn’t exactly Penix’s forte either. His knees are teams’ biggest concerns about his long-term viability in this league. However, the guy rises to the occasion.
The Rams may not love the NFL Draft as much as everyone else, but they did strike gold in recent years with Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua at the wide receiver position. The Rams need a ready-made solution for if anything were to happen to Stafford, while looking towards their future. Penix can be that guy.
If Penix is not going to the Rams, then I have hard time seeing them pass on Nix with that selection.
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Why aren’t the Braves playing on Opening Day? Makeup date, updates
The Atlanta Braves are not playing on Opening Day, but a new start date and time has already been revealed.
Of all of the Opening Day matchups, the one that received the most buzz by far was the game featuring the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies. There are multiple reasons for this.
First, these are crucial games. The NL East figures to be a two-horse race between these two teams. Whichever team can win the Opening Series will have an immediate leg up. Second, the pitching matchup is insane. Spencer Strider and Zack Wheeler are arguably the two best pitchers in baseball, and they’re set to face off at a packed house in Philadelphia.
Third, the history. These two teams have met in the NLDS in each of the last two seasons, and the Phillies have knocked off the Braves both times. Atlanta wants revenge, and Philadelphia wants to show that they can compete with the Braves in the regular season.
Unfortunately, these two teams and fan bases will have to wait another day to watch this matchup take place as Mother Nature will prevent the game from taking place as scheduled. These teams were initially set to face off on Thursday, but that will change.
Braves Opening Day postponed: Everything to know
When forecasts came out throughout the week, the idea of this game possibly getting postponed was a very realistic one. As of Wednesday afternoon, the game was officially postponed.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) March 27, 2024
The time of the game remains the same, 3:05 p.m. ET. The only change is the date. Instead of it happening on Thursday, Opening Day will be on Friday, March 29.
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