Ronald Acuna Jr. gets married in morning, hits grand slam in evening
Ronald Acuna Jr. made sure to end his August with a bang. The Atlanta Braves slugger secured not one, but two memorable moments within a 12-hour span on Thursday.
Acuna got married earlier in the day to his longtime girlfriend Maria Laborde in an intimate ceremony officiated outdoors.
Ronald got married today. Congrats to the Acuña family! #ForTheA pic.twitter.com/ItdqsYYwqN
— Chop Oñ (@13ChopOn13) August 31, 2023
Amazing day: Ronald Acuña Jr. confirmed to me in our @MLBNetwork interview that he and his wife were married in Los Angeles this morning.@MLB @Braves
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) September 1, 2023
The two have been together for more than three years and also share two children. Acuna’s proposal video made the rounds on social media in January (video here).
Not long after the ceremony, Acuna and the Braves faced off against the Los Angeles Dodgers in a battle between the NL’s two top teams by record.
In the top of the 2nd inning with the bases loaded, the NL MVP frontrunner clobbered a fastball from Dodgers pitcher Lance Lynn to the seats in left-center field. Not only did the grand slam push the Braves ahead 5-1, but it also gave Acuna 30 home runs for the season. The 25-year-old became the first player in MLB history to record both 30 homers and 60 stolen bases in a single season.
GRAND SLAM FOR RONALD ACUÑA JR. TO GIVE HIM THE FIRST 30/60 SEASON IN MLB HISTORY pic.twitter.com/UXPtuSdkOr
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) September 1, 2023
The Dodgers made the game interesting with four home runs following Acuna’s grand slam. The Braves were able to hang on for an 8-7 victory.
Acuna finished the day with 3 hits, 4 RBIs, a win over the Dodgers, and a new wife.