Red Sox analyst claims Ronald Acuna Jr. is bitter over 3 major MLB signings

Frustration seems to be growing inside Ronald Acuna Jr. as he continues to miss games. The Atlanta Braves outfielder is recovering from an ACL injury after he played 49 games last season. With him missing out on games, he is letting his frustration known by commenting on something he didn't feel was right with the organization.

On Saturday night, when Jarred Kelenic's lack of hustle baserunning cost the Braves a potential run, manager Brian Snitker didn't take him out of the game. This led Acuna Jr. to go on the internet and say that if he were in the place of Kelenic, he would have been thrown out of the game due to a lack of hustle play, referencing the incident in 2019 when the exact same thing happened.

While much can be interpreted from his choice of words, Boston Red Sox analyst Jarred Carrabis believes it has something to do with Acuna Jr.'s contract situation. Carrabis compared Acuna Jr.'s eight-year, $100 million deal to that of Juan Soto, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s whopping contracts.

"If I'm him, I'm looking around like, I got pissed about Tatis getting $340 [million]," Carrabis said (40:53 onwards) on Underdog MLB Show. "Now I'm certainly pissed about Soto getting $765 [million], Vlad Jr. now getting $500 [million].

"I'm like, man, my contract looks shittier and shittier by the day. Like, I’m feeling a little bitter because I’m also looking around being like, let's see—I have an MVP. Does Vlad? No. Does Tatis? No. Does Soto? No. Like, I am bitter if I am Acuña Jr."

Juan Soto's 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s 14-year, $500 million deal were struck in the past six months only. Meanwhile, Fernando Tatis Jr. got in bed with the San Diego Padres in 2021, signing a 14-year, $340 million contract.

Jarred Carabis ties Ronald Acuna Jr.'s wild tweet with contract situation

While the tweet that Ronald Acuna Jr. used to target Braves manager Brian Snitker for his obliviousness has been deleted, his growing frustration stems from the fact he has to sit by and watch players with the same production as him getting contracts five to seven times larger than his.

Later in the segment, Jared Carrabis referenced a word from former Red Sox ace Pedro Martinez, who said the dollars on one's paycheck are about how much a player is respected around the league, not just their performance.

Finally, Carrabis deduces that because of that, Acuna Jr. is not in the right frame of mind, resulting in that wild team which could hurt the Braves locker room.

"And while you watch all these other guys get paid 5x, 7x what you got paid, I'm just not ruling out the idea that he's in not the best headspace, which makes it even more likely that you're going to fire off a tweet and not think twice about it," Carrabis added. "You're just like, 'Yeah, whatever, dude. I'm f***ing miserable. I'm pissed.'"

It won't be long now before Ronald Acuna Jr. steps foot on the field again, as the latest update suggests that he is eyeing a return date by early to mid-May.