Atlanta Braves extend Ronald Acuna through 2028
By Fred Owens
Multiple sources report the Atlanta Braves and Ronald Acuna Jr., agreed this morning on an eight-year, $100M contract extension
The Atlanta Braves joined the list of Major League teams extending their young stars today when they agreed with Ronald Acuna Jr. on an 8-year/$90M deal with a $10M (minimum) buyout clause that brings the total value of the basic deal to $100M.
Yahoo’s Jeff Passan broke the story and reports that (Twitter link) the option years are worth $17M each meaning the Braves young superstar would earn $124M if both options are picked up.
The only cloud on the horizon is lack of word on a no-trade clause (though no Atlanta player has ever received one in the past).
The Atlanta #Braves today agreed to terms with OF Ronald Acuña Jr. on an eight-year contract extension through 2026 worth $100 million, with club options for the 2027 and 2028 seasons. pic.twitter.com/Rm18jswH5r
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) April 2, 2019
The contract includes the 2019 season and extends team control of Acuna at least 4 – and up to 6 – years past his potential free agent year of 2024. It’s the second largest contract in Atlanta Braves history behind Freddie Freeman’s 8-year $135M deal and tentatively gives Acuna another record.
From my research, which admittedly is not Elias, Ronald Acuña Jr. (21 years, 105 days old) will become the youngest player with a $100+ million contract in baseball history. #Braves
— Grant McAuley (@grantmcauley) April 2, 2019
The deal provides their young, rising star with security and stability, and is an absolute steal for the Braves as they retain control through his age 31 season. Just last week Alan suggested a deal with the same duration with a value of $204M while I had a spirited discussion about $204M being too low.
Predictably, fans are generally euphoric over the news.
Knowing that the #Braves will have Acuña for essentially his whole career and his entire prime makes me unbelievably happy. #ChopOn #MLB pic.twitter.com/BXE9jjstqz
— Roger (@Jr22944310) April 2, 2019
Thanks for staying with us for at least 10 more years @ronaldacunajr24, estoy súper feliz que te tendremos en Atlanta por muchos años y espero que sea por siempre. Ahora a ganar MVP’s y World Series!!! ❤️ #Braves #ChopOn
— Jeffrey/Sad Dolphins Fan (@KatysMyHabibi) April 2, 2019
Rather than bore you with statistics you already know ( I can hear you applauding), I’ll show you how Acuna stands in MLB history. Here are the players who produced more than 4.0 bWAR and 3.4 fWAR at or under age 21, since 1979.
| Name | Age | bWAR | fWAR | Year | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | wRC+ | wOBA |
| Mike Trout | 20 | 10.5 | 10.1 | 2012 | .326 | .399 | .564 | .963 | 167 | .409 |
| Alex Rodriguez | 20 | 9.4 | 9.2 | 1996 | .358 | .414 | .631 | 1.045 | 159 | .443 |
| Manny Machado | 20 | 6.7 | 5 | 2013 | .283 | .314 | .432 | .746 | 102 | .325 |
| Jason Heyward | 20 | 6.4 | 4.6 | 2010 | .277 | .393 | .456 | .849 | 134 | .377 |
| Ken Griffey Jr. | 20 | 5.2 | 5 | 1990 | .300 | .366 | .481 | .847 | 132 | .372 |
| Carlos Correa | 20 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 2015 | .279 | .345 | .512 | .857 | 136 | .365 |
| Roberto Alomar | 20 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 1988 | .266 | .328 | .382 | .709 | 107 | .319 |
| Ronald Acuna Jr. | 20 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 2018 | .293 | .366 | .552 | .917 | 143 | .388 |
| Bryce Harper | 19 | 5.2 | 4.4 | 2012 | .270 | .340 | .477 | .817 | 121 | .352 |
(In case you’re curious, the Nationals’ Juan Soto also posted a 3.7 fWAR in 2018 at the season-age of 19. However, his bWAR came in well short at 3.0, though other stats in this chart were comparable:
- BA .292 / OBP .406 / SLG .517 / OPS .923 / wRC+ 146 / wOBA .392 )