Ronald Acuña Jr. weighs in on Mets prospect and younger brother Luisangel Acuña

Ronald Acuña Jr. is ready for the rivalry between the Mets and the Atlanta Braves to heat up again.

The Braves outfielder and one of the young faces of baseball is eagerly awaiting the day that his brother, Mets top prospect Luisangel Acuña, gets called up to the big club in Queens. The younger Acuña came to the Mets a few weeks ago from the Texas Rangers organization in a trade that saw right-handed ace Max Scherzer going to the Lonestar State.

He’s currently playing for Double-A Binghamton, but he could reach the Major Leagues as soon as next season. Next season still isn’t quick enough for his big brother.

“If it was up to me, he would already be up here,” Ronald said through a translator this weekend at Citi Field during the Mets series against the Braves.

It hasn’t been much of a rivalry between the two NL East foes in recent seasons. Atlanta is 8-1 against the Mets this season. The Braves have won 14 of their last 16 games against them dating back to last season and have outscored their supposed rivals 118-54 in that span.

The Braves infamously swept the Mets out of first place in the final weekend of the regular season in 2022, relegating them to the Wild Card round. The Mets haven’t been the same since. But the younger Acuña brother might be a silver lining. A historically disappointing season triggered a rest of sorts and the club used its best resource — money — to acquire Luisangel with the hope that his impact bat will help the Mets score more than 54 runs in 16 games.

“I think we’re going to have a great rivalry because there are so many parts of our game that are similar,” Ronald said. “Watching him play feels sort of like watching myself play, to be honest.”

If that’s the case, then the Mets may have landed themselves a superstar.

There are some major differences between the two players, namely their positions — Luisangel is a middle infielder — and their height — Ronald is listed at 6-0 and Luisangel at 5-foot-8. Talent evaluators don’t think Luisangel will possess the same power as his older brother but he’s still projected to hit 15-20 homers a season.

However, they both got the speed gene.

Ronald, the 2018 NL Rookie of the Year, led the league with 54 stolen bases last season, becoming the first player since 2017 to do so and becoming the first player in MLB history to record 20 home runs and 50 stolen bases before August. Luisangel has already stolen 44 this season in Double-A.

“He’s already a better player (than I am),” Ronald said. “Some of the things he’s doing at his age, I wasn’t doing when I was his age.”

Luisangel is expected to move from shortstop to second base with shortstop Francisco Lindor signed through 2031. He has a strong arm and good range.

His brother is considered a franchise cornerstone. His 6.3 fWAR ranks second behind Shohei Ohtani this season and when healthy, he’s one of the best overall players in the league. Ronald talks to his brother daily and gives him advice. If Luisangel has even half the talent as his brother, they’ll have a franchise cornerstone on their hands too.

“I look up to my brother,” Luisangel said through Mets translator Alan Suriel last week when the Rumble Ponies were in Bridgewater, New Jersey. “I obviously learned a lot from him, him being a superstar in the game. I consider him a big part of my career because he’s always been there for me.”

Ronald will have to wait a little longer to face his brother in the big leagues, but maybe not much.

“I think they traded for him because they have plans for him here,” Ronald said. “I’m hoping and expecting him to keep putting in the work in the minor leagues. I hope to see him here sooner rather than later.”

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