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Analysis: Breakdown of Ronald Acuna's first 30 days in MLB, compared to other stars

The 20-year-old has enjoyed a proficient first month with the Braves, despite tallying multiple hits in back-to-back games just once and not collecting homers on consecutive days.

Today's date marks the one-month anniversary of Ronald Acuna's lauded promotion to the major leagues (April 25 at Cincinnati).

It also creates a good window of opportunity here, in terms of stacking up Acuna's first 30 days of MLB action against some of baseball's most hyped rookies of the last 25 years.

ACUNA (age 20 ... 26 games)

STATS: 4 HR, 12 RBI, 16 runs, 2 steals, 9 extra-base hits, .250 batting, .313 OBP, .746 OPS

THE SKINNY: At first blush, it's easy to be underwhelmed about the 30-day launch. Acuna hasn't belted a homer in consecutive games. He hasn't socked multiple RBI or scored multiple runs in back-to-back outings.

Plus, for a guy with supreme speed, the cumulative tally of two steals seems a tad deflating.

And yet, Acuna's overall numbers hold up well, thanks to a capacity for scoring runs at a prodigious clip and getting his money's worth at the plate (nine extra-base hits through 26 games).

RANKING 'THE FIRST 30 DAYS' OF OTHER MEGA-HYPED STARS

1. ALBERT PUJOLS (2001 ... age 21 ... 26-game sample)

TEAM: Cardinals

STATS: 8 HR, 27 RBI, 17 runs, 17 extra-base hits, .366 batting, .429 OBP, 1.132 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Pujols' strong debut had plenty of legs during the summer months. The rookie finished with absurd numbers in homers (37), RBI (130), runs (112), hits (194), batting average (.329), on-base percentage (.403) and OPS (1.013); and yet, he finished just fourth in the balloting for National League MVP (trailing only Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Luis Gonzalez).

Also, for his first 12 seasons in the majors, Pujols—one of only four MLB players with 600 homers/3,000 hits (along with Hank Aaron, Alex Rodriguez, Willie Mays)—absurdly averaged 40 homers, 120 RBI, 115 runs and 42 doubles, along with a .325 batting average, .414 OBP and 1.022 OPS.

2. JASON HEYWARD (2010 ... age 20 ... 26-game sample)

TEAM: Braves

STATS: 8 HR, 24 RBI, 14 runs, 12 extra-base hits, .286 batting, .408 OBP, 1.027 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Heyward has enjoyed a solid career over nine MLB seasons, collecting five Golden Glove awards, 100-plus steals, 100-plus homers, $100-plus million in salary and nearly 500 RBI (as of May 25).

However, after averaging 20 homers, 65 RBI, 14 steals and 75 runs in his first three years with Atlanta (2010-12), Heyward has turned into a fungible asset who's no longer a lock for 20-plus homers, 70 runs or an on-base percentage north of .325.

3. ICHIRO SUZUKI (2001 ... age 27 ... 27-game sample)

TEAM: Mariners

STATS: 2 HR, 12 RBI, 19 runs, 5 steals, 7 extra-base hits, .333 batting, .359 OBP, .798 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Suzuki remains the only player of this century to capture league MVP honors as a rookie.

Granted, he accomplished the feat at age 27, after years of piling up prodigious numbers in Japanese pro ball. But it still counts for this exercise. (Check out this famous outfield assist.)

For that glorious 2001 campaign, which also involved the Mariners establishing an American League record of 116 regular-season wins (no World Series, though), Ichiro accounted for 56 steals (tops in baseball), 242 hits (tops in baseball) and the American League batting title (.350 average).

Despite breaking into the bigs at such a late age, Suzuki still enjoyed 10 seasons of 200-plus hits and eventually reached the 3,000-hit mark in 2017.

4. KRIS BRYANT (2015 ... age 23 ... 29 games)

TEAM: Cubs

STATS: 4 HR, 24 RBI, 19 runs, 2 steals, 10 extra-base hits, .291 batting, .426 OBP, .902 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Curiously, Bryant endured a 20-game homer-less stretch to start his major-league career in 2015; but the reckoning would soon follow that inauspicious start.

As a rookie, Bryant still cranked out 26 homers and won NL Rookie Of The Year honors. The following season, which ended with the Cubs' first World Series title in 108 years, Bryant was the easy pick for National League MVP (39 HR, 102 RBI, 112 runs, .292 batting, .385 OBP).

5. RYAN BRAUN (2007 ... age 23 ... 28 games)

TEAM: Brewers

STATS: 5 HR, 19 RBI, 24 runs, 5 steals, 16 extra-base hits, .327 batting, .369 OBP, .951 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: From a business perspective, the 2007 Brewers (83-79 overall) did the prudent thing in slow-walking Braun's major-league clock, through the act of delaying his big-league callup until May 25.

From a victory standpoint, though, Milwaukee's chances of reaching the postseason that year would have gone up substantially, if Braun had been a lineup fixture on Day 1. (The Brewers finished three wins shy of winning the NL Central title.)

For his rookie campaign, Braun needed only 113 games to amass 34 homers, 97 RBI, 91 runs, 15 steals, a .324 batting average and 1.004 OPS.

Incredibly, 23 other National Leaguers finished ahead of Braun for MVP voting that season.

6. CARLOS CORREA (2015 ... age 20 ... 28 games)

TEAM: Astros

STATS: 7 HR, 19 RBI, 18 runs, 5 steals, 16 extra-base hits, .283 batting, .312 OBP, .845 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Correa was a remarkably consistent asset over his first three seasons, averaging 22 homers, 83 RBI, 70 runs, 10 steals and a .288 batting average.

As the capper, Correa helped the Astros take home their first world championship last season.

Right now, Correa comprises one-half of MLB's best second base/shortstop combo (along with Jose Altuve). In due time, Correa might be universally hailed as baseball's best shortstop.

7. BRYCE HARPER (2012 ... age 19 ... 28 games)

TEAM: Nationals

STATS: 4 HR, 11 RBI, 21 runs, 2 steals, 13 extra-base hits, .286 batting, .372 OBP, .886 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: You might have heard Harper will be an unrestricted free agent at season's end. There's also speculation that Harper will become the first $400 million man in baseball.

If this becomes fact next winter, the checkbook champions might have to sweat the notion of Harper's hype ... exceeding his actual on-field numbers.

It's worth noting: Heading into Year 7, Harper has never broken the 100-RBI barrier. He has enjoyed just one campaign of 100-plus runs; and he exceeded .300 batting for the season only twice.

8. BUSTER POSEY (2009-10 ... age 22 ... 18 games)

TEAM: Giants

STATS: 1 HR, 6 RBI, 7 runs, 5 extra-base hits, .351 batting, .462 OBP, .932 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Posey's the only player in this countdown to have his first 30 days carry over to the following season; and he made the most of the break by racking up a .324 batting average and .361 OBP in the spring of 2010 (18-game stretch).

9. NOMAR GARCIAPARRA (1996 ... age 23 ... 24 games)

TEAM: Red Sox

STATS: 4 HR, 16 RBI, 11 runs, 5 steals, 9 extra-base hits, .241 batting, .272 OBP, .743 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Garciaparra, a Georgia Tech star at the college level, posted decent numbers when cracking the major leagues for the first time. But things took off like a rocket the following season, with Nomar earning AL Rookie Of The Year honors (30 HR, 98 RBI, 122 runs, league-leading tallies with triples and hits).

Digging deeper, for a relatively injury-free run of 1997-2003, Garciaparra averaged 24 homers, 93 RBI, 96 runs and a batting average of .325, while sharing the positional spotlight with two other icons in the American League—Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez.

10. EVAN LONGORIA (2008 ... age 22 ... 28 games)

TEAM: Rays

STATS: 4 HR, 15 RBI, 13 runs, 2 steals, 9 extra-base hits, .223 batting, .324 OBP, .739 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Longoria couldn't have asked for a better inaugural season, taking home AL Rookie Of The Year honors (27 homers, 85 RBI) and helping the Rays clinch the first American League pennant in franchise history.

For his first nine seasons, Longoria won two Gold Gloves, averaged 27 homers/90 RBI and finished among the top-11 balloting for American League MVP four different times.

11. MIKE PIAZZA (1992 ... age 23 ... 18 games)

TEAM: Dodgers

STATS: 1 HR, 7 RBI, 5 runs, 4 extra-base hits, .250 batting, .311 OBP, .669 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Piazza was certainly an unheralded prospect in the 1988 MLB Draft, sliding to the 62nd round, before quickly rising to prominence in the minors.

Also, for the 1993-2000 seasons, Piazza owned an eight-year average of 35 homers, 109 RBI, 87 runs, a .330 batting average and OPS rate just south of 1.000.

What's more, the Hall of Famer likely stands as the greatest hitting catcher in baseball history—after Johnny Bench, of course.

12. AARON JUDGE (2016 ... age 24 ... 27 games)

TEAM: Yankees

STATS: 4 HR, 10 RBI, 10 runs, 6 extra-base hits, .179 batting, .263 OBP, .608 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Judge went wild in his first full season with the Yankees (2017), rolling for 52 homers, 114 RBI, 128 runs and an OPS rate north of 1.000.

It would be dramatically different from Judge's inaugural campaign with the big club (2016), barely posting an OBP higher than .260.

13. MIKE TROUT (2011 ... age 20 ... 14 games)

TEAM: Angels

STATS: 1 HR, 6 RBI, 6 runs, 1 steal, 3 extra-base hits, .163 batting, .213 OBP, .492 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: Don't let the low countdown ranking here fool you.

In the modern era, Trout (two-time American League MVP) has arguably produced the best eight seasons to launch a career in baseball history.

From 2011-17, Trout boasts five MLB runs titles, three OBP titles and one RBI championship (2014). During that stretch, Trout also averaged 33 homers, 92 RBI, 112 runs, 27 steals and an OBP well north of .400.

There's also this: For his brief rookie campaign of 2011 ... after the initially awkward stretch of 14 games, Trout rolled up four homers, seven RBI, a .409 batting average and 1.480 OPS in his next seven outings.

14. DEREK JETER (1995 ... age 20 ... 13 games)

TEAM: Yankees

STATS: 0 HR, 6 RBI, 5 runs, 4 extra-base hits, .234 batting, .280 OBP, .620 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: The name Chad Mottola will forever be the answer to an infamous trivia question, as in, 'In 1992, who did the Cincinnati Reds draft just one slot above Derek Jeter?'

Of course, in early 1995, some grumpy Yankees fans might have preferred seeing Mottola in pinstripes, as well, after watching Jeter endure a rough first 30 days in the big leagues.

Jeter's redemption arc in 1996 entailed a .314 batting average, 100-plus runs, a hilarious Seinfeld cameo and one unlikely world championship. Over time, Jeter would account for nearly 3,500 career hits and four World Series rings (1996, 1998-2000) for baseball's last true dynasty.

15. ALEX RODRIGUEZ (1994 ... age 18 ... 17 games)

TEAM: Mariners

STATS: 0 HR, 2 RBI, 4 runs, 0 extra-base hits, .204 batting, .241 OBP, .445 OPS

THE AFTERMATH: OK, so A-Rod finished last in this countdown, something which rarely occurred in his real baseball life. But the rough start didn't last long.

For his age-20 campaign in 1996, Rodriguez broke out in a crazy-good manner, racking up 36 homers, 123 RBI, 54 doubles, 141 runs and claiming the American League batting title (.358).

It's also worth noting: A-Rod missed out on 'AL MVP' honors that season, despite topping Juan Gonzalez in runs, offensive WAR, steals, batting average, on-base percentage and OPS.

In today's sabermetric-friendly world, Rodriguez would have easily earned that MVP trophy.

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