SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Ronald Acuña Jr., the likely National League MVP, will be playing baseball before February.
For the second straight year, he’ll play for Tiburones de La Guaira of the Venezuelan Winter League.
“I think it worked well for him. Just him playing was a good thing.” Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said Wednesday at the general managers’ meetings. “If position players wanna play – I think we view pitchers a little differently – but if any of our position players want to play in the winter, unless they’re coming off some type of injury, we encourage them to play.”
The Venezuelan Winter League season started in late October. Acuña should soon make his season debut for the club.
In 34 at-bats for the same team last winter, Acuña hit .441 with a 1.160 OPS. He doubled once, homered twice and drove in six runs. The experience preceded his MVP season.
Vaughn Grissom will also play winter ball. He’s playing in Puerto Rico, for Cangrejeros de Santurce. In addition to getting more at-bats, this could help Grissom continue playing multiple positions, which would be of value to the Braves.
This will be Grissom’s first experience with winter ball.
An opening in left field
This much is obvious: After declining Eddie Rosario’s $9 million option for 2024, the Braves have an opening in left field.
Asked whether the Braves will seek an everyday left fielder or a platoon setup, Anthopoulos said: “I don’t know yet. And obviously, look, declining (the option) on Eddie Rosario, tough decision, he had a good year for us. He’s done a very good job, he’s a huge part of us winning a World Series. But clearly we have an opening there, and that’s something that we’re just gonna take the winter to play out. It could come in so many forms. We’re just getting started. Candidly, I don’t have an answer for you, but we’ll just kind of see how the offseason goes.”
Why the Braves felt comfortable giving Joe Jiménez a three-year deal
On Nov. 2, the Braves signed right-handed reliever Joe Jiménez to a three-year, $26 million deal.
The figures, especially the years, signified how much Atlanta believes in Jiménez.
“Look, we got to know him,” Anthopoulos said. “The makeup is outstanding, the work ethic is outstanding. Model of health for us. He had a back issue when we got him, but overall, very healthy, very durable guy. Look, his performance kept getting better over the course of the year. We think now with a normal offseason, not having to recover from back surgery and so on, we think he can be even better in 2024. We’re excited to have him back. But you guys know this: We definitely value the makeup, the character, the work ethic, especially in the bullpen. It’s been a hallmark of our teams the last few years, and he was a great fit.”
When discussing his bullpen in an answer to another question, Anthopoulos mentioned re-signing Jiménez and Pierce Johnson. He said Tyler Matzek and Dylan Lee are set to go into spring training healthy. He said the Braves like Michael Tonkin, who is out of options. He also named Nick Anderson and Daysbel Hernandez.
Extra Innings
- Here’s a name you haven’t heard in a minute: Huascar Ynoa! The righty, who underwent Tommy John surgery last September, should be fully healthy for spring training, Anthopoulos said. He’ll come in and compete for a spot on the team.
- Michael Soroka, whose season ended in early September because right forearm inflammation, is expected to be a full participant next spring. “Feeling better,” Anthopoulos said. “And right now, the reports are good.”
- The Braves still haven’t decided where Hurston Waldrep, their first-round pick over the summer, will begin next season. Asked if we could see him in the majors at some point in 2024, Anthopoulos said: “I just don’t want to put expectations on him.” The Braves will see how he performs in the spring.
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