Mets prospect Luisangel Acuna has a bet with his brother Ronald Acuna Jr.

The Acuna brothers have a bet going about who can steal the most bases this season.

Aug 8, 2023; Bridgewater, NJ; Mets' new minor league prospect Luisangel Acu  a is shown at TD Bank
Aug 8, 2023; Bridgewater, NJ; Mets' new minor league prospect Luisangel Acu a is shown at TD Bank / Anne-Marie Caruso/NorthJersey.com / USA

On Tuesday night, New York Mets prospect Luisangel Acuna stole 3 bases including two in the seventh inning after getting hit by a pitch.

He now has 46 on the season in the minors, but it won’t win him a bet he has with his brother, Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr. According to Tim Healey of Newsday, the brothers have a bet going about who can steal more bases.

The elder Acuna, we know this because he’s a Junior and only Andy from The Office would ever have a younger brother who is the Junior, didn’t add to his stolen base total. He had to settle for a Braves win and a leadoff home run to give him 26 on the season.

NY Mets prospect Luisangel Acuna is in a friendly competition with his brother

Competitions between brothers can get out of hand, but this one seems friendly enough. The two aren’t sworn enemies quite yet. Luisangel is still in the minors. Until he is standing on the other side of the field in a Mets uniform, the two hermanos can congratulate each other with every successful swipe of a bag.

In 84 games with Double-A Frisco, Acuna had 42 stolen bases this season. He entered action on Tuesday for Binghamton with only one thus far. Now at 46 for the year, he continues to trail his brother but maybe not for long. He has already bested his previous high of 44 stolen bases. Now caught just 6 times, Acuna is showing Mets fans one part of his game they can look forward to seeing in the near future.

A lot has changed with the Mets organization in the last 48 hours. Most notably, Brett Baty was demoted and they’ve started to hand Ronny Mauricio an opportunity to play third base along with the two middle infield positions where he has already familiarized himself.

The assumption is we will see more of Baty in left field down in the minors with opportunities to work on his third base defense whenever Mauricio isn’t in the lineup either. How does this pertain to Acuna and his quick legs? Second base has cleared out a little bit more. The Mets do still have Jeff McNeil who could become more of a roving utility player to start at second base, third base, and both corner outfield positions.

As for the bet between the Acuna brothers, Healey didn’t reveal what the winner gets. Bragging rights? The head seat at the Christmas dinner table? Knowing how brothers work, this might be a case of the loser getting punished rather than awarding the victor.

Ronald has the advantage now and overall because of MLB schedules including more games. However, Luisangel gets to run against inferior pitchers and catchers. This one could end up as a photo finish if Luisangel takes his new team name, the Rumble

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