Ronald Acuña Jr. accomplished a legendary feat on Friday. The Atlanta Braves star became just the fifth player in MLB history to join the 40-40 club. Only Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, and Alfonso Soriano had previously accomplished the feat. Bonds, who's regarded as one of the best players ever, sent a message to Acuña on Instagram following the historic moment.
“Congratulations @ronaldacunajr13 for joining the 40/40 club. And also writing your own club… 40/70 and still counting, you are a BAD Boy stay healthy and God Bless you,” Bonds wrote on Instagram.
Acuña replied with a comment on the post, writing “Thank you.”
Five players in MLB history have now hit 40 home runs and stolen 40 bases in a single-season. Accomplishing that feat alone is incredible. But Ronald Acuña Jr. is doing things that the MLB world has never seen before in 2023.
Bonds wrote in his post that Acuña is “writing” his own club. He wasn't lying, as Acuña is the first 40-60 player in the history of baseball. He currently leads the league with 68 stolen bases, and will probably reach 70 steals before the end of the '23 campaign.
There was previous debate about who the National League MVP will be. Los Angeles Dodgers stars Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman were closing in on Acuña, while Matt Olson of the Braves was also being mentioned in the conversation. However, the NL MVP debate isn't open for discussion anymore. It would be shocking if Acuña did not win the award after joining this exclusive club.
Ronald Acuña Jr. is having not just an MVP-caliber campaign, but one of the best individual seasons of all-time. Perhaps he can cap it off by leading the Braves to a World Series victory.