Ronald Acuña Jr. Reveals His Choice for HR Derby Pitcher

Monday night won't be Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr.'s first shot at the MLB Home Run Derby. He competed in 2019, eventually being eliminated by Pete Alonso in the semifinals. The 24-year-old's strategy isn't changing much this time around, especially when it comes to his pitcher.

Ronald Acuna Jr. Home Run Derby

Braves coach Tomas Perez will be pitching to Acuna, just as he did in the All-Star's first appearance. The two share a special bond as they both come from Venezuela and Perez is sure that fans back home are going to be tuning in to watch. Of course, the yearly event kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Perez has pitched to Acuna during batting practice for years now and he has pinpointed the 24-year-old's sweet spot at the plate. He will be aiming to a little bit inside and in the upper part of the strike zone. That will allow Acuna to show off his pull side power and ability to hit to the opposite field.

Acuna has been practicing in hopes of being the last one standing. He and Perez even simulated a timed minute in Washington over the weekend. On the year, Acuna has racked up 8 home runs in 59 games played and his average HR distance sits at an impressive 437 feet.

FanDuel Sportsbook has released odds for the 2022 HR Derby and Pete Alonso remains the favorite at +185. Acuna checks in with the fifth-best odds set at +850.

Larry Rupp is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Larry Rupp also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username phillyfan424. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.