Acuna proves he belongs in Double-A debut

Ronald Acuna wasted no time establishing himself in Double-A ball.
The Braves' No. 7 prospect homered on the first pitch he saw at the new level and finished 3-for-4 with a stolen base, three RBIs and two runs scored to help Mississippi to a 9-1 thumping of visiting Mobile on Tuesday.
"His skill set is really good," Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker told MiLB.com in late April. "He's a talented kid and I really liked the way he made adjustments on the fly during counts this spring. His aptitude and feel for the game is really advanced for his age. He's good in the outfield and he can fly. He's got all five tools. Now he just needs to play."

Box score
The 19-year-old center fielder is the youngest player in Double-A -- taking that title from his team's Tuesday night starter, No. 46 overall prospect and reigning Southern League Pitcher of the Week Kolby Allard, who turns 20 in August. (Mike Soroka, another Mississippi starter, was born nine days before Allard. Fifth-ranked Padres prospect and fellow 19-year-old Luis Urías plays in the Texas League and has a June birthday.) Several players on each team during Acuna's debut were 25 or older.
Batting second, MLB.com's No. 92 overall prospect crushed Tyler Carpenter's opening offering over the wall in left-center field to stake the M-Braves to a 2-1 lead.

Facing Carpenter again in the second, the Venezuela native poked a 1-1 pitch up the middle for a single. He stole second, but Carpenter picked him off to end the inning.
Acuna got another hit -- and another RBI -- against the BayBears starter in the fourth. With runners on the corners, he roped a liner into center.
In the sixth, Cody Buckel struck him out on three pitches. The third was a curveball well outside the zone.
"He's 19 years old and being a kid sometimes he wants to do a little too much," Class A Advanced Florida hitting coach Carlos Mendez told MiLB.com after the youngster posted a four-hit game last week. "Ronald can hit the ball out of any park, he can throw and he's already good in the field but will get better. He's got a high ceiling."
Travis Demeritte, the Braves' No. 9 prospect, homered for the second straight game and put together his second consecutive multi-hit performance, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored.
Allard (3-1) notched the win after allowing one run on three hits and two walks while fanning three over six innings. The outing actually hiked his ERA to 1.38 through seven Southern League starts.
David Fletcher, the Angels' No. 11 prospect, singled twice, stole a base and drove in a run for Mobile.