Miguel Cabrera wants Braves' $100,000,000 star Ronald Acuna Jr. to reach 500 HRs: "I don’t want to be the lone Venezuelan"
When Detroit Tigers icon Miguel Cabrera announced that the 2023 season would be his last, fans knew that the league would be losing a generational talent. Now, the Venezuelan slugger has lauded a countryman of his in truly flattering fashion.
On September 13, TIME magazine published their list of the 100 most influential people in 2023. Alongside the list, TIME also published the TIME100 Next , which aimed to profile rising stars who may someday make the big cut.
Among the names included on the TIME100 Next list was Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves. The outfielder is having a historic season, and has shown no signs of slowing down. Beneath Acuna's name, Miguel Cabrera penned a message for his countryman.
"Time magazine presents Ronald Acuña Jr as one of the most influential person of the year 2023. By Miguel Cabrera. Both amazing players of the same land" - kapunka
According to the Detroit Tigers star, Acuna Jr. "Has a great chance of becoming the best Venezuelan-born baseball player ever." These are big words coming from Cabrera, a two-time MVP and the last player to have won an AL Triple Crown.
Widely considered as the best Venezuelan baseball player ever, Cabrera's words carry all the more weight. Referencing his status as the only player from his homeland to ever hit 500 home runs, Cabrera claimed that Ronald Acuna Jr. is likely to join him in that elite company.
Ronald Acuna is hitting .335/.416/.586 for the Atlanta Braves this season. Moreover, he became just the fourth player to reach the 30-home run mark while swiping 100 bases. Currently, Acuna Jr. has 37 home runs, 97 RBIs, and a league-best 66 stolen bases.
"Pero...pero... ¡RONALD ACUÑA JR.!" - Las Mayores
A native of the northwestern city of Maracaibo, Acuna's career was thrown into doubt when he suffered a complete ACL tear in the summer of 2021. Now, just over two years later, many expect him to win the NL MVP Award, becoming the first Venezuelan to do so since Cabrera clinched it in 2013.
Miguel Cabrera and Ronald Acuna Jr. will forever define Venezuelan MLB stardom
With a record of 96-50, the Braves have the best division in baseball, and currently enjoy a seventeen-game lead over the second-place Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East. For Acuna, only 25, his second career World Series is very much in reach. Judging by how he is playing, Cabrera's case looks very viable indeed.