Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. exited Friday’s game against the Brewers after sustaining a groin injury in the seventh inning. With the bases loaded and no outs, Acuña chopped the ball back toward third base, where it was ruled an infield single after Travis Shaw failed to scoop it. Something didn’t look right after Acuña ran out the hit, however, and he was quickly replaced with Charlie Culberson at first base/left field.
The official diagnosis is left groin tightness, according to an official announcement, though the Braves have yet to specify the severity of the injury or how long they expect Acuña to be sidelined. The 20-year-old rookie already missed a month of play this summer after landing on the 10-day disabled list with an ACL sprain in his left knee in late May, and had only appeared in eight games since his return. Heading into Friday’s game, he slashed .262/.361/.469 with seven home runs and a .790 OPS through 159 plate appearances.
Dansby Swanson followed Acuña’s infield hit with a two-run single of his own, but it still wasn’t enough to catch the Brewers. After two fruitless innings against Milwaukee’s Jeremy Jeffress and Corey Knebel, the Braves fell 5-4 in their second straight loss of the series -- and fourth consecutive loss of the week.
