When Ronald Acuña Jr. went down with a season-ending injury, many questioned who would replace him in the leadoff spot.
Thankfully the Braves have found their man.
On Saturday, Jarred Kelenic made hitting a leadoff homer look easy against Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes. Kelenic, moved to the top spot in the batting order for the past 14 games, has certainly started to earn his stripes with the Braves. He is hitting .354 (20-for-57) with five home runs in that period.
While having the responsibility to set the tone through being a leadoff hitter, it’s evident that Kelenic doesn’t let the pressure get to him.
“I’ve said this many times and it’s me being completely honest is that I try to individualize each and every at-bat whether I’m in first or whether I’m in ninth,” Kelenic said. “I just feel like if you go up there thinking that you have more responsibility it’s kind of a distracting factor to what you’re trying to do.”
Kelenic is continuing to get hot and he’s up to nine home runs.
Pitcher Max Fried said, “He’s a competitor, he expects a lot out of himself. He’s extremely talented so when he gets going and lets himself, you know, not try to do too much and stays within himself to be able to just let his ability play. I mean you’ve seen what he can do.”
Kelenic contributed on offense and defense Saturday, showing what he’s able to do at center field. His exceptional catch at the top of the eighth inning kept the energy alive, igniting most of the sell-out crowd onto their feet.
He said, “It was a big play … if that ball gets down my mentality was before it was even hit, that if there was a ball hit to me that I was going to do everything I could to make a play and make sure that we touch the ground.”
Kelenic isn’t the only Braves player that is progressing as June ends. Third baseman Austin Riley kicked off Friday’s series by hitting his ninth homer of the season. In Saturday’s game, second baseman Ozzie Albies, shortstop Orlando Arcia, and Riley all had hits.
Braves manager Brian Snitker said, “You got a guy running around (in the batting order), you know nine, and then jumping to one, I mean it’s a lot of responsibility you’re putting on the kid and he’s responded really, really well which is a really good sign of the player himself.”
