Ronald Acuña Jr. is back for the Atlanta Braves, and that’s cause for most to celebrate.
Acuña, who tore his ACL nearly 12 full months ago in Pittsburgh, is set to play for the first time all season in the Braves’ game Friday against the Washington Nationals.
However, whenever an injured player returns to the active roster, someone becomes a casualty. And rather than sending someone to the minor leagues, the Braves decided the best course of action was to give up on a former All-Star.
On Friday, the Braves announced that to make room for Acuña on the roster, shortstop Orlando Arcia had been designated for assignment.
Arcia, 30, had been the Braves’ primary starting shortstop for the 2023 and 2024 seasons, but lost the job to Nick Allen early this season. He had a disappointing .625 OPS in 2024, but this season has been even worse, with a .445 OPS in just 14 games.
He was one of the more unlikely All-Stars in recent memory, riding a hot start in 2023 to make the National League roster over more established names, especially Francisco Lindor of the New York Mets.
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As little as Arcia was playing, it was still somewhat surprising to see him be the one removed, because he and Acuña don’t play the same position. Many guessed that either Stuart Fairchild or Alex Verdugo would be the casualty instead.
Now, Arcia heads to waivers, and if he goes unclaimed, he can elect free agency due to having more than five years of major league service time. If a team were to claim him, they would owe the remainder of his 2025 salary, which was $2 million. Otherwise, the Braves will foot the rest of the bill.
While Arcia was always on the team for his defense, no one can keep a stronghold on a roster spot if they can’t hit at least a little bit. If Arcia can rediscover his offense elsewhere, perhaps he can keep his career going.
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