Ronald Acuna Jr. benching newest twist in drama-filled NL East
I really like the Nationwide League East. In the event that they gave a daytime Emmy Award for greatest cleaning soap opera of 2019, it must go the NL East. We’ve Bryce Harper, bullpen issues up and down the division, managers on the recent seat, chilly spells, sizzling streaks, Pete Alonso mashing, Ronald Acuna Jr. hitting residence runs and robbing residence runs and stealing bases … and, on Sunday, not hustling and turning an extra-base hit right into a single and a caught stealing.
We’ll get to Alonso and the wildness the previous two days in D.C. in a second, however Sunday’s Bravo-approved drama begins with Braves supervisor Brian Snitker pulling Acuna from a 5-Three victory over the Dodgers after Acuna watched a fly ball fall wanting a house run, turning a certain double right into a single. He then compounded his mistake by getting caught stealing.
On the time, the Braves have been down Three-Zero, so it was a gutsy determination by Snitker to take away his younger star from the sport. “He did not run. You have to run,” Snitker stated after the sport. “That is not going to be acceptable right here. The identify on the entrance is much more vital than the identify on the again. … You possibly can’t let your teammates down.”
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Ronald Acuna Jr. watches his hit go off the wall within the third inning, which leads to a single. Acuna is taken out of the sport after 4 innings.
Acuna stated there was “no excuse” for watching the ball as a substitute of operating and that he revered Snitker’s determination. OK, it seems that that is one plotline that will not develop right into a full-blown melodrama. Certainly, the hopeful result’s a priceless lesson realized for Acuna:
Ronald Acuña Jr. has been taken out of the largest sport but for watching a possible HR turned single. This will likely be a GOOD LESSON for a younger participant with TONS of expertise. Snitker Cares about Ñ, THE TEAM & sends a message to everybody about taking part in the sport the best manner. #ChopOn pic.twitter.com/ysPYnUczfE
— Paul Byrd (@PaulByrd36) August 18, 2019
Acuna has earned a repute for showboating at occasions, though I interpret that extra as a younger child having enjoyable. Nonetheless, there is a time to have enjoyable and a time whenever you hustle in any respect prices. As Cubs supervisor Joe Maddon stated from the Little League Basic on Sunday about what recommendation he’d give Little Leaguers: “Run exhausting to first base. I feel in the event you run exhausting to first base, it affirms the remainder of your sport. I do not assume it is any extra difficult than that.”
Snitker understands this greater than most. He is a longtime minor league supervisor who has seen numerous gamers with a fraction of Acuna’s expertise play exhausting always and fail to succeed in the majors. The very last thing you wish to see is a 21-year-old star develop unhealthy habits.
How quickly may Ronald Acuña Jr. declare Greatest Participant in Baseball title? Jeff Passan
I feel it importantly exhibits Snitker’s confidence in doing his job the best way he believes it must be executed — a job that continues to mount in strain because the Braves’ bullpen has struggled and Snitker has wavered on how he deploys his relievers. The Braves in all probability needs to be operating away with the division given the customarily mediocre outcomes from the Nationals, Phillies and Mets, however as a substitute lead by solely 5½ video games. Keep in mind, normal supervisor Alex Anthopoulos inherited Snitker as supervisor. There’s at all times some lack of job safety in a scenario like that.
Perhaps one motive the whole lot appeared calm after the sport is the Braves received, as outfielder Rafael Ortega, making his first begin of the 12 months, hit a grand slam within the backside of the sixth off Dodgers rookie Dustin Could. The bullpen even tossed 4 innings of one-hit aid, with Chris Martin, Shane Greene and Mark Melancon — the three deadline acquisitions — tossing the ultimate three frames with out giving up successful.
So lesson realized for Acuna. And the bullpen could be rounding into form. Perhaps the Braves will make it a drama-free race in September.
Alonso units rookie report: The Mets beat the Royals 11-5, trailing Four-Three within the seventh after they rallied for six runs on eight hits — all singles and doubles. Granted, it wasn’t Kelvin Herrera and Wade Davis in aid for the Royals, nevertheless it was enjoyable to see a workforce assault the strike zone, put the ball in play and spray it round for a giant rally. Alonso hit an RBI double off the highest of the wall in proper area in that inning, then added his 40th residence run within the high of ninth:
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Pete Alonso crushes a house run that provides him 40 on the season, making him the primary Nationwide League participant to hit 40 in his first MLB season.
That broke Cody Bellinger’s Nationwide League rookie mark of 39 set in 2017. Subsequent up: Mark McGwire at 49 after which Aaron Choose’s MLB report of 52, additionally set in 2017. After a sluggish July during which he hit .177 with six residence runs, Alonso has bounced again in August, hitting .355/.444/.710. Alonso is now slugging .604. The one Met with a .600 slugging share in a season: Mike Piazza, who slugged .614 in 2000 and .607 in 1998.
Nationals bounce again, slug eight residence runs: Additional proof that there isn’t any such factor as momentum in baseball (except you are a pitcher for the Orioles). The Brewers beat the Nationals 15-14 in 14 innings on Saturday, in what was possibly the sport of the 12 months — and the hardest loss for a workforce all season. The Brewers took the lead within the ninth inning of that sport after they hit three residence runs off Nationals nearer Sean Doolittle. The Nationals would tie it to drive extras and tie it once more within the 13th earlier than lastly dropping. A gut-punch defeat.
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Flip forward to Sunday. Doolittle goes to the injured record due to a knee drawback — he gave up 10 runs and 5 residence runs over his previous 5 outings. So what occurs? The Nationals tie a workforce report with eight residence runs in a 16-Eight victory. Baseball is great. Juan Soto smashed two of these, bringing his season whole to 28, and has hit 50 residence runs earlier than turning 21. Solely Mel Ott (61) and Tony Conigliaro (56) had extra at that age. Child can swat.
the house run binge this season has created all types of loopy stats. Here is another: There have been 5 video games in MLB historical past during which each groups mixed for no less than 12 residence runs — three of them have occurred this season and two this weekend:
6/10/2019: Phillies (5) and D-backs (Eight)
Sunday: Brewers (Four) and Nationals (Eight)
Friday: Giants (6) and D-backs (6)
7/2/2002: Tigers (6) and White Sox (6)
5/28/1995: Tigers (7) and White Sox (5)
Everybody can swat, it appears.
So can Rafael Devers: The Purple Sox trailed the Orioles 6-Zero within the third inning, the day after Chris Sale went on the IL due to elbow irritation. It could possibly be worse than that: Sale will meet with Dr. James Andrews on Monday. So the outlook wasn’t sensible for the Boston 9. Within the backside of third, Devers had an RBI groundout. He doubled in a run within the sixth because the Purple Sox scored six runs to take the lead for good. He belted a two-run homer within the seventh. He ended up going Four-for-5 with two doubles, his 27th residence run and 4 RBIs. His season line: .332/.380/.596, 101 RBIs. Child can swat.
My favourite Devers stat: He is as much as 46 doubles. By way of the season’s first two months, it was Josh Bell who was hitting doubles at an incredible tempo. Now it is Devers. His tempo initiatives to 59 for the 12 months. Solely six gamers have hit 60 doubles in a season, the final in 1936. Attending to the report of 67 is an excessive unlikelihood, however I might love 60 doubles. Except you have been alive 83 years in the past, you’ve got by no means seen it occur.
Win of the day: All this drama and the largest victory of the day in all probability goes to the Tampa Bay Rays, who rallied for 2 runs within the eighth and two within the ninth to beat the Tigers 5-Four. (On Saturday, Rays pitchers struck out 24 batters and walked none in a 1-Zero victory in 13 innings. No, the Tigers are usually not a very good ballclub.) So back-to-back walk-off wins is fairly candy. Here is Ji-Man Choi doing the honors on Sunday:
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After trailing the Tigers for the whole thing of the sport, Ji-man Choi hits a single to middle area to attain Travis d’Arnaud and provides the Rays a walk-off victory.
Lastly … Congrats to Zack Greinke for selecting up his 200th profession victory, becoming a member of CC Sabathia and Justin Verlander as the one energetic pitchers with 200 wins. … Congrats to Seattle’s Yusei Kikuchi for throwing a “Maddux”: a complete-game shutout with fewer than 100 pitches. He blanked the Blue Jays on 96 pitches for his first win since June. … Congrats to the Indians for splitting their four-game collection at Yankee Stadium. Mike Clevinger fanned 10 in 5 scoreless innings. (Maintain an eye fixed out for updates on Corey Kluber, who left his first minor league rehab begin after one inning due to stomach tightness.)
Whew. Let’s flip to Monday and see what new residence run marks may be set. And what new drama will unfold within the NL East.