Rowdy Tellez vs Ronald Acuña Jr. Player Prediction for Milwaukee Brewers vs Atlanta Braves - May 8th | MLB 2022

Rowdy Tellez squares off against Ronald Acuña Jr. on Sunday, May 8, as the Milwaukee Brewers visit the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park, Atlanta, Georgia. Acuna Jr. is fresh off the injured list after being sidelined for more than nine months with a torn ACL. And he is ready for business. At the time of writing, the 24-year-old prodigy has a home run, three RBIs and two stolen bases—pretty impressive numbers considering he's easing back into things.

Rowdy Tellez is another story. The 6' 4" 255-pound giant has come out of nowhere this season to lead the Brewers in batting average and RBIs. He's beating former MVP Christian Yelich in home runs and slugging percentage, too. That may stand to change, though, considering Yelich is starting to heat up. But Tellez is still a potent hitter and has been a major reason for his club's 19-8 start to the season.

Rowdy Tellez vs Ronald Acuña Jr.

Still, it feels weird uttering his name in the same breath as Acuña Jr.'s.

Rowdy Tellez Preview

Rowdy Tellez has looked like one of the MLB's elite hitters so far

Rowdy Tellez owns a Baseball Savant in-depth statistics page bearing a striking resemblance to that of Mike Trout. He's in the 88th percentile and higher for average exit velocity, expected batting average, hard-hit percentage, and more. His expected slugging average is in MLB's 100th percentile, and his barrel percentage is in the 98th. The barrel percentage is more telling than any other stat; if Tellez can keep making contact this often, the results will keep coming. He's a powerful hitter. Maybe all he's been missing up until now is the contact and plate discipline. His strikeout rate and chase rate could still be better. They're hovering around the league's 50th percentile.

The big lefty is also batting .274 with a .619 slugging percentage. He has 23 hits in 92 plate appearances, seven of which are home runs. He's also batted in 24 runs. He hasn't stolen any bases yet and probably never will. His sprint speed is in the league's second percentile.

Ronald Acuña Jr. Preview

Ronald Acuña Jr. is just 24-years-old and one of the MLB's best players

Who isn't excited to see Ronald Acuña Jr. play again? The dynamic 24-year-old owned a .990 OPS and hit 24 home runs in 360 plate appearances before his injury last season. He also racked up 49 walks in that time, showing he's one of the more disciplined hitters you'll see.

Acuña Jr. reminded everyone on Friday night why he has two Silver Slugger award sand and 2018's Rookie of the Year award on his resume. In the series opener against the Brewers, Acuña Jr. smacked a 450-foot home run with a sizzling 111.7 MPH exit velocity as he fell to the ground.

"Have you ever seen anyone homer while FALLING DOWN?! Welcome back, Ronald Acuña Jr." - @MLB

Here's another angle better depicting his tumble. He owned it, though. The slugger bounced right back up and trotted around the bases like a champ.

"Only Ronald Acuña Jr. could fall down from his swing and still make it look cool" - @Talkin' Baseball

Rowdy Tellez vs the Atlanta Braves pitching

Charlie Morton will take the mound for the Atlanta Braves this Sunday. The right-hander has enjoyed better seasons. He's 1-3 with a 6.85 ERA and 1.45 WHIP going into this contest.

Tellez has never squared off against Charlie Morton, but he'll be looking to make an impression. Morton's handedness plays right into Tellez's preference. He bats considerably better against right-handers than he does against left-handers.

Ronald Acuña Jr. vs the Milwaukee Brewers pitching

Aaron Ashby takes the mound for the Brewers on Sunday. The left-hander is 0-2 this season, but owns a handsome 2.33 ERA.

Ronald Acuña Jr. doesn't have a very good idea what he's up against with Ashby. He's never faced him before, but he's faced other lefties and he loves hitting against them. He has a solid career batting average of .283 against them, indicating that he's probably going to smack a couple hits off Ashby.

Rowdy Tellez vs Ronald Acuña Jr.

This one will surprise us. Rowdy Tellez will prove that he can keep pace with Acuña Jr., at least for one game. We're predicting he'll smack a double, while Acuña Jr. will hit a couple singles for his squad. Riding the momentum of his hot streak, Tellez will drive in a couple runs and lead the Brewers to victory.