"I got scared a lot" - Ronald Acuna Jr. reflects on season ending knee injury after exiting Braves vs Pirates game

The Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. had to leave Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park early. In the first inning, he suffered a non-contact injury while running the bases.

Acuna was running and tried to change direction by planting his left foot, but suddenly fell down in a lot of pain, as can be seen in the video shared on X (formerly Twitter):

Acuna stayed down for a while and then had to leave the game because of the pain in his left knee. Talking about the same, he said (via MLB.com):

“I got scared a lot because I felt the pain in the beginning… Hopefully, everything is going to go well.”

“I saw the catcher throwing the ball back to the pitcher very slow. I was timing that so I could steal third. But in that moment, he threw it hard. So I had to come back, and that’s when I felt it.”

At first, the Atlanta Braves speculated it was just soreness; however, the situation turned out to be much worse. After undergoing an MRI, it was found that Acuna had an ACL tear in his left knee.

Sharing the news on X (formerly Twitter), the Atlanta Braves wrote:

“OF Ronald Acuña Jr. tonight underwent an MRI that revealed a complete tear of the ACL in his left knee. He is set to undergo surgery at a date yet to be determined and will miss the remainder of the 2024 season.”

The reigning NL MVP will undergo season-ending surgery, marking his second major knee injury of his career. This is the second big blow for the Atlanta Braves this season after star pitcher Spencer Strider had to undergo elbow surgery, ending his season too.

Despite Acuna leaving the game early, the Atlanta Braves recorded a stellar 8-1 victory against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

“Sorry” - Ronald Acuna Jr. apologizes after getting sidelined with a season-ending injury

In 2021, Ronald Acuna Jr. suffered an ACL tear in his right knee, benching him for about half of that season and also some of the 2022 season.

After learning that his 2024 season was compromised, Acuna took to X (formerly Twitter) to apologize to fans. Along with sharing a broken heart emoji and a weeping emoji, he wrote:

“Sorry”

So far in the 2024 season, Acuna has played 49 games with a slash line of .250/.351/.365 hitting 4 homers, 15 RBIs and 16 stolen bases.