Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. was already tied for the hardest throw of the season. He outdid himself with a laser beam from right field to third base.
Ronald Acuña Jr. is not of this world. One highlight from Friday’s game between the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees proves it.
Acuña Jr. turned a routine flyout into one of the best throws you’ll see all year — or perhaps ever. Not to be a prisoner of the moment, but I challenge you to find a more impressive one than this:
WHAT A THROW FROM RONALD ACUÑA JR.!@goodyear #MLBNShowcase | @Braves pic.twitter.com/fhYKdQ7KEh
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) July 19, 2025
This wasn’t just a laser beam from the middle of right field to third. It was in the corner, at the warning track. He threw that thing on a frozen rope straight to Nacho Alvarez Jr. for the out. Should Jorbit Vivas have shown more hustle to get to third? Sure. Should the third base coach have warned him to slide in? Absolutely. Does that change the sheer insanity of pulling off that out? Nope.
Ronald Acuña Jr. reminded runners not to test him, even from 300 feet
Acuña Jr. is just one of those players. He does the unimaginable.
And he makes it look easy. Imagine being able to make a catch, turn and somewhat casually launch a baseball 300-plus feet on a dime? We already knew he could launch at an MLB-best 104.9 mph, per Statcast. It’ll be fun to see what the velo on this throw was.
There are a lot of things major leaguers can do that I’d never dream of pulling off. But that throw is beyond the stuff of dreams. That’s pure, unadulterated audacity. Vivas clearly didn’t think he had it in him. He knows better now.
The throw and double play ended the top of the third inning. Getting Spencer Strider out of a hole with men on first and second, both of whom he walked.
It kept the Braves 3-0 lead intact. They’d go on to double it in the bottom of third on Ozzie Albies’ three-run homer. Acuña Jr. himself added a seventh run in the bottom of the fourth after tripling and then scoring on single from Drake Baldwin. He’d already accounted for an RBI and run after an opening inning double.
