Ronald Acuña Jr. Cares More About World Baseball Classic Than Playing For The Braves

Ronald Acuña Jr. is one of baseball's best players, and the face of the Atlanta Braves organization. In his few healthy seasons, he's put up incredible numbers, culminating in his remarkable 2023 season. A .337 batting average, with a .416 on base percentage, .596 slugging percentage, 41 home runs to go along with 73 steals, and an incredible 149 runs scored. 

While he didn't play in the 2021 World Series, he was a part of a championship-winning team, the first for Atlanta since 1995 and just the fourth in franchise history. He's been part of the Braves organization his entire career, for nearly 12 years, signing with them when he was just 16-years-old.

And he still cares less about being on the Braves than he does about playing in the World Baseball Classic for Venezuela. That's how much this tournament has grown and changed since its inception.

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Venezuela right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. (Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Ronald Acuña Jr. Says WBC Is The Best Moment Of His Career

Immediately after Team Venezuela beat Team Italy in the semifinals at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Acuña could be seen in the outfield getting visibly emotional. Afterward, he told reporter Francys Romero that he viewed it as the number one moment of his professional baseball career. 

"This moment, I would rank it number 1 in my career," he said. "I love the Atlanta Braves, but before the Braves I was born in Venezuela, and it’s where I come from."

Well, Braves fans are going to love hearing that!

Again, Acuña literally was part of a team that won the World Series, and advancing to the finals of the World Baseball Classic ranks as the best moment of his career. They haven't even won the tournament yet! They're significant underdogs to win the tournament in Tuesday's finale, going up against a fearsome Team USA lineup that has yet to really get going. 

To be fair to Acuña, almost every athlete who's competed on the international stage for their country will say there's something different and special about it. Unless you're a skier on the US Olympic team, in which case you have to make your terrible political opinions more important than the country giving you every advantage and opportunity.

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And while the World Baseball Classic has never been perceived as reaching the same level of importance as the Olympics, it's clear that for some of the players it's a very meaningful experience that allows them to represent where they come from and their culture. Except for Tarik Skubal, apparently.