Braves' Ronald Acuna: Poised to run more this season
Acuna may be one of the players who benefits the most from Atlanta having hired Antoan Richardson as its new baserunning coach, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.
Richardson was the man most responsible for Juan Soto's stunning 38-steal campaign in 2025, and the coach might have a little more to work with in Atlanta with Michael Harris, Ozzie Albies and Acuna all potentially capable of making a much bigger impact with their legs. A more aggressive approach on the basepaths also fits with new manager Walt Weiss' philosophy. "Antoan knows how important baserunning is to me," Weiss said. "It's really important to him, and he's made it important to the players." Acuna stole an incredible 73 bags in 2023, but he went just 9-for-10 on SB attempts in 2025 in his first year back from ACL surgery. With Richardson's acumen in analyzing pitcher tendencies to support him, Acuna is likely to ramp up his activity on the basepaths once again.
