Ronald Acuña Jr. (hamstring) back from the IL

Not only is Acuña Jr. at the top of the lineup, but he’s right back into the outfield, which is a great sign for his health. Drake Baldwin will DH this game and hit second, with Joey Bart starting behind the dish and hitting eighth.

Acuña played the full game in right field during the front end of Saturday’s doubleheader for Gwinnett before sitting out the nightcap. He told reporters afterwards that he’s ready to go with all signs pointing to a return to Atlanta’s lineup for Monday’s series opener against the Mets in New York. It seems highly unlikely that he’ll join the Braves for their final game against the Orioles on Sunday, but stranger things have happened.

The thinking was that Friday’s game might be Acuña’s last before being activated from his hamstring strain, but it was rained out and will made up as part of a doubleheader on Saturday. Acuña could play in both games then before rejoining the Braves, and it that happens, he’ll likely get Sunday off before being activated Monday.

Acuña will play in Triple-A Gwinnett tonight and looks likely to return at some point this weekend against the Orioles. Weiss added that if he wasn’t activated Friday, “almost certainly” he’d be activated this weekend. Acuña has been rehabbing his hamstring since July 13 in the FCL league and then at Gwinnett. The fantasy superstar should be safe to plug in to lineups immediately upon his return.

Acuña got five at-bats at DH out of the leadoff spot in his seventh rehab contest. The 28-year-old fantasy superstar could potentially be activated for Thursday’s series finale against San Diego, but he seems far more likely to get one final tune-up under his belt prior at Triple-A before returning for Friday’s series opener on the road in Baltimore.

Acuña logged seven innings in right field during his sixth rehab appearance since beginning a minor-league assignment over the All-Star break. At this point, it’s entirely possible Atlanta has seen enough and decides to activate him for the final two games of their current series against the Padres. Stay tuned.

The single was hit at 106.9 mph. Acuña is working his way back from the hamstring strain that has sidelined him since near the start of June. The hope is that the 28-year-old star can return during the team’s current homestand which goes through Thursday. Assuming he doesn’t suffer a setback, it seems likely he’s back at the top of the Atlanta lineup in the coming days.

Acuña’s latest minor league rehab game for Triple-A Gwinnett was postponed due to rain on Friday. The 28-year-old is in the final stages of his rehabilitation process from a hamstring strain that put him on the shelf back in early June. The Braves have two games left with the Rangers this weekend before hosting the Padres for a four-game set that gets underway on Monday. It seems highly likely that Acuña will return at some point in the next few days, which is a huge development for fantasy managers coming out of the All-Star break.

Over the All-Star break, Acuña had been playing in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League. Acuña hit a grand slam yesterday for the FCL Braves. Today he’ll be bumped up to Gwinnett, meaning he’s probably in line to return to the bigs in the next couple of days.

Acuña has gone 0-for-6 with two strikeouts across a pair of contests for Atlanta’s lone minor-league affiliate still playing organized baseball during the All-Star break. The 28-year-old franchise cornerstone appears likely to rejoin the Braves lineup when they kick off the second half with a three-game series against the Rangers on Friday.