'He's the MVP': Acuña makes history as Braves rout Rox 

ATLANTA -- Ronald Acuña Jr. scored without a ball leaving the infield and Travis d'Arnaud tried to hit a ball completely out of Truist Park. All of this happened as the Braves produced another first-inning uprising in their 8-1 win over the Rockies on Friday night.

You might not know what the Braves, who have won four in a row, are going to do every night. But with the electric Acuña accounting for just a portion of the team’s ridiculous power, there’s certainly reason to anticipate something special happening in every Atlanta game.

“The lineup is really dangerous,” d’Arnaud said. “It makes for a tough sleep the night before.”

Opponents might battle insomnia, but Braves fans may be restless with excitement the night before a game.

Those who witnessed Friday night’s game saw Acuña become the first player in AL/NL history to tally 30-plus stolen bases and 15-plus homers within the first 70 games of a season. They also saw the Braves move closer to the record for most 450-plus-foot homers hit in any season since Statcast was introduced in 2015.

With a little more than half of a season left, it’s incredible to think what kind of numbers Acuña and this power-packed lineup might end up producing.

The Braves’ goals are to win a sixth straight National League East title and experience the World Series euphoria they felt in 2021. In the process, they might prove to be baseball’s most exciting team.

The excitement starts at the top where Acuña is constructing an MVP resume. His ability to beat opponents in many ways is highlighted in the fact he is on pace to hit 34 homers and steal 69 bases. No player has ever had a 30/60 season.

In fact, the only players to hit 30-plus homers and tally 50-plus stolen bases were Eric Davis (37 HRs, 50 SBs) in 1987 and Barry Bonds (33, 52) in ‘90.

“It’s exciting to see him set the table, and also eat off the table when there’s runners on base,” d’Arnaud said. “He’s the MVP. To be on his team and to see him do it every day is pretty special.”

Asked how many stolen bases he’ll end up with in 2023, Acuña, through an interpreter, said: “Whatever I can finish with, but every time I get to first, I’m running.”

Acuña got the Braves rolling on Friday, when he walked, stole second, took third base on a grounder and scored on a wild pitch. His legs are special and his power is ridiculous.

Acuña leads MLB with six 450-plus-foot homers this season. Entering Friday, Shohei Ohtani had four. The only other two players with at least three were Braves corner infielders Matt Olson and Austin Riley.

So, it shouldn’t be any surprise to hear the Braves lead the Majors with 15 homers that have traveled a Statcast-projected 450 feet or longer. The Angels and Rockies entered Friday ranked second with six.

In other words, Acuña has hit more 450-plus-foot homers than all but 27 of the other 29 teams. Olson and Riley have hit as many such homers as 27 of the other 29 teams.

But this latest majestic shot was provided by d’Arnaud, who began the seventh multi-homer game of his career with a 474-foot shot off Dinelson Lamet in the first. This was the longest homer of d’Arnaud’s career, the longest homer hit by a Braves player in 2023, and the fourth-longest homer hit at Truist Park since it opened in 2017.

d’Arnaud added a 433-foot homer in the third inning. The Braves now have the three longest average distances this year in two-homer games:

• Riley, 5/25 vs. PHI -- 458, 459 (avg: 458.5)
• Olson, 5/28 vs. PHI -- 445, 464 (avg: 454.5)
• d’Arnaud, 6/16 vs. COL -- 474, 433 (avg: 453.5)

An All-Star in 2022, d’Arnaud’s playing time has been reduced by the presence of Sean Murphy, who leads in All-Star voting among NL catchers, and the resurgence of designated hitter Marcell Ozuna. Games like this prove d’Arnaud’s value still extends to being the team’s clubhouse leader.

“Both of those homers went a long way,” manager Brian Snitker said. “I told him, 'Maybe I was playing you too much the past couple years.'”

Snitker, d’Arnaud, Acuña and others walked away from this feeling jovial and excited about what the next game might bring.