Acuña stuns Yanks with 301-foot outfield assist

ATLANTA -- Ronald Acuña Jr. caught the New York Yankees off-guard with a spectacular propulsion to extremity the 3rd inning successful the Atlanta Braves' series-opening 7-3 victory Friday night.

The All-Star close fielder threw retired Jorbit Vivas astatine 3rd basal erstwhile Vivas was trying to tag up connected a heavy alert to the country successful right.

At 301 feet -- nary bounces -- it is the longest outfield assistance this season, and the archetypal propulsion of 300+ feet with nary bounces since Mookie Betts' 302-foot propulsion to support Ketel Marte from stretching a treble into a triple connected July 31, 2020.

"His accuracy is stupid," Braves manager Brian Snitker said. "He's a limb successful close field. His limb is truthful beardown and accurate, and the shot carries, merchandise is good. He's peculiar retired there."

Acuña caught the shot conscionable successful beforehand of the informing way with his backmost to the infield. He spun and fired a propulsion that reached 3rd basal successful the aerial conscionable successful clip for Nacho Alvarez Jr. to tag a slowing Vivas, who ignored third-base manager Luis Rojas' awesome to slide.

"I conscionable ever effort to expect those plays," Acuña said done an interpreter. "That's truly what I ever effort to absorption on, anticipating the play earlier it happens. I truly wasn't trying to bash thing too that. Thankfully, I person a bully arm."

Alvarez was casual arsenic the propulsion approached successful an effort to fool Vivas, who would apt person been harmless if helium had tally hard each the mode and slid.

"(Vivas) got deked," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "That conscionable can't happen. I did that each my vocation astatine 3rd base. Just benignant of play dumb, play dead. And that's what (Vivas) read. The assemblage connection of Alvarez there, conscionable deked him. He knew it was a heavy alert ball, truthful it caught up to him. ... It's a acquisition that that can't hap connected a shot field, particularly successful that situation."

It was the longest propulsion to implicit a treble play since 2021 (Adam Eaton's propulsion traveled 302 feet connected July 4).

ESPN Research and The Associated Press contributed to this report.