Ronald Acuña Jr. Suffers Injury Setback Amid Braves' Hot Start

MLB stat extraordinaire Sarah Langs recently relayed that 51% of division winners at least held a share of their division lead entering May 1 since 1996.

That’s music to the Atlanta Braves‘ ears.

“The largest division lead right now belongs to the Braves, at 6.5 games,” Langs wrote. “That's tied with the 2012 Rangers for the third-largest division lead entering May since divisional play began in 1969. Only the 2001 Mariners (nine games) and 1977 Dodgers (7 1/2) led by more.”

The Braves hold an MLB-best 25-10 record. That’s a promising indication that Atlanta will return to the playoffs after missing out last year - and can potentially compete for their first World Series title since 2021.

But in the short term, Atlanta has built a cushion to withstand an injury to one of its best players.

Five-time All-Star outfielder and 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. pulled up and grabbed his hamstring while running out a ground ball in the top of the second against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night. He couldn’t finish running to first and exited the game with “left hamstring tightness.”

Acuña Jr. has struggled with injuries since his MVP season. He suffered a season-ending torn ACL in May 2024, which cut into his playing time last season, but he hadn’t missed a game for the Braves this season before exiting Saturday.

Acuña Jr. was batting .252/.362/.378 with 32 hits - eight doubles, two home runs, and one triple - and nine RBI across 127 at-bats in 34 games. He also leads Atlanta with seven stolen bases.

The Braves completed a sweep of the Rockies with an 11-6 win in Colorado on Sunday. They’ll travel to Seattle for a three-game series with the Mariners over the next three days, followed by a visit to the back-to-back defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers next weekend.

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This story was originally published May 3, 2026 at 8:12 PM.