Will Ronald Acuna Jr.'s strikeouts be a concern during the upcoming season?
When healthy, Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr. is one of the best players in the sport. He was limited to 95 games played in 2025 and 49 games played in 2024, however. Is there another concern besides Acuna's ability to stay on the field, though?
In 2025, Acuna played well through his 95 games, slashing .290/.417/.518 across 412 plate appearances. He added 21 home runs and 12 doubles in his limited action. It was enough of a sample size to judge Acuna's season, and for the most part it was a promising campaign. However, his 24.8 percent strikeout rate was his highest mark since 2020.
So, are Acuna's strikeouts a concern?
A Look at Ronald Acuna Jr.'s Strikeouts
Acuna dealt with some strikeout trouble early in his career, but he has been able to limit them as he's continued to grow in the big leagues. In 2019, Acuna finished fifth in National League MVP voting, but he did strike out a career-high 188 times across 156 games played. It was clear he had some swing-and-miss in his game as he approached 200 strikeouts for the season.
The 2020 campaign was a shortened season, and due to injuries, Acuna wouldn't play in 120 or more games again until 2023 -- when he appeared in 159 total contests. That season, Acuna struck out just 84 times. He had clearly fixed his strikeout problem -- or so we thought.
In 2025, despite appearing in less than 100 games as mentioned, Acuna struck out 102 times en route to his 24.8 strikeout percentage. From 2018-2020, Acuna recorded higher strikeout percentages than that mark. 2021-2024 saw him finish below the mark, though. His attention-grabbing 11.4 strikeout percentage in 2023 was a career-best.
Now, he still performed well in 2019 despite his strikeout concerns. 2023 saw Acuna win the NL MVP Award, however. If he wants to play at that level again, Acuna will not only need to stay healthy, but he will want to limit his strikeouts as well.
Plenty of stars over the years have struggled in this department, but a number of the best hitters consistently find ways to improve. Acuna had seemingly accomplished that feat before falling into old habits once again in 2025. Since he is one of the best players in baseball, though, it would not be surprising to see Ronald Acuna Jr. bounce back sooner rather than later.