Ronald Acuña Jr. sets new Atlanta Braves record with yet another stolen base

SEATTLE - It took less than a month into the 2024 season for Ronald Acuña Jr. to make history. In the Braves' shutout win against the Florida Marlins on April 22, the Venezuelan had a slow afternoon at bat but still found ways to contribute offensively.

At the bottom of the first inning, Acuña stole his 10th base of the season and the 190th in his career with the Atlanta Braves, making him the all-time leader in steals since the team moved to Atlanta in 1966.

Right after reaching the milestone, Acuña celebrated with John Cena's trademark gesture "You Can't See Me."

Acuña has now surpassed Rafael Furcal, who stole 189 bases with the Braves between 2000-05, on the all-time list.

"I didn't know I was on the brink to be honest," Acuña said through an interpreter. "Usually when I'm approaching a record someone tells me or I see it online. This time I didn't see it. But I think it's better this way. It's great. I didn't even know what had happened."

With Furcal now in the rearview mirror, only nine players remain ahead of Acuña. Herman Long, who played for the Braves for 13 years, holds the franchise all-time record with 434 stolen bases.

The current NL MVP, who recorded the first 40-homer, 70-steal season in MLB history in 2023, sits just 50 stolen bases away from tying franchise legend Hank Aaron, who holds the Modern Era franchise record (since 1900) with 240 swiped bags.

"I just ask God to keep me healthy, so I can keep playing well, keep breaking records, and most importantly keep helping the team win," Acuña said.

Offensively it's been a slow start for Acuña, who is batting for .293 and has just one homer in 21 games this year. But the Venezuelan had a similar start during this MVP season last year. Compared to his first 21 games of 2023, he is just two homers and one stolen base behind his 40-70 numbers of last year.

Ever since making his Major League Baseball debut in 2018, the Venezuelan has been a constant threat for pitchers league-wide. No other player in the Majors has swiped more bases than the Venezuelan since he entered the league in 2018 and has earned MVP votes in four of his seven seasons with Atlanta.