On Wednesday night, Ronald Acuña Jr. continued his blazing hot streak and hit his fourth home run in four days. While the Atlanta Braves are in the middle of facing their toughest competition of the season thus far, Acuña hasn't cooled off.

In four games between the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers series, all four of Acuña's home runs have been over 420-feet (421, 454, 455, 429). He's been absolutely mashing the ball this year, hitting 11 home runs, holding a slash line of .347/.439/.617 with a league leading 1.056 OPS. He's also second in stolen bases with 17.

Acuña has been nothing but hype since he arrived in Atlanta. Has he lived up to it? To some degree, absolutely. He's undoubtedly played a substantial role in the Braves resurgence. But whether through injury or sometimes foolish, youthful play, he's never quite transcended into that superstar that everyone has wanted him to be.

Acuña is playing differently in 2023, though.

Maturity

Acuña, now 25, is perhaps maturing. He still has that kid-like play, smiling, joking with fellow teammates like Ozzie Albies. He still nonchalantly catches flyballs in the outfield. He even still does his side stutter-step to third base after hitting a home run. But what he's not been doing this season is eyeing homers that don't leave the yard, not legging out the play. It's his whole style of play that has matured the most. He no longer plays the game with wreckless abandonment like he used to — which will hopefully help him avoid injury. He's a smarter ballplayer this year.

Injury free Acuña 

Acuña tore his ACL right before the All-Star break in 2021 that kept him out the rest of that season but never truly rounded into form when he returned in 2022. He seemed to always be riddled by nagging injuries that kept him constantly in and out of the lineup that caused inconsistent play.

This year, though, we are finally seeing the Ronald Acuña Jr. we've been longing to see ever since he made his debut back in 2018.

That hasn't been without a few scares, however. He missed the second game of a double-header against the New York Mets in early May after being hit by a pitch in the left shoulder, causing a minor contusion. Later in the same week against the Miami Marlins, he fouled a pitch off his left leg, leaving the game. Thankfully, that was it and it hasn't slowed down the Braves right fielder whatsoever.

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An injury free Acuña isn't only good for the Braves, it's good for baseball. The sport not only wants but needs players like Acuña who make the game fun and exciting.

Taking advantage of the new rules

There's been certain players that have adjusted well to the new slate of MLB rules. Acuña is without a doubt one of them. Since game one of this season, Acuña has been wreaking havoc on the base paths. He'll antagonize pitchers on the mound, dare them to throw their limit of three over to first, then take off. It's why he's second in stolen bases in the entire league.

It's still a long season but through almost two months, Acuña is reaching that next level as a baseball player. How he's taken advantage of the new game with little adjustment, making it work for him, it beyond impressive. It's why he'll be an MVP if he stays healthy.