Aug. 29 (UPI) — Two fans ran on the field, sprinted to Ronald Acuna Jr. and collided with the star outfielder, forcing him to fall to the ground in the seventh inning on an Atlanta Braves win over the Colorado Rockies.
The incident occurred in the bottom of the inning Monday at Coors Field in Denver. Acuna was standing in the outfield when an initial fan found his way into the area.
The man put his arm around Acuna and held up his phone to take a selfie-style photo. A security guard then ran into the area and pulled the fan off the Braves star.
Another fan came flying in from another direction during the exchange. He appeared to want to hug Acuna, but was ran into the Braves star, forcing him to fall backwards over a security guard and land on the ground. The fans were then removed from the field and the game continued.
“I think the fans were out there and asking for pictures,” Acuna told reporters. “I really couldn’t say anything because at that point, security was already there and we were already kind of tangled up, but security was able to get there and everything’s OK. We’re all OK, and I hope they’re OK.”
Earlier in the inning, Acuna stole his 60th base, becoming just the fourth player in history to reach that total while hitting at least 20 home runs in the same season. Acuna also hit his 29th homer of the year in the fifth inning. With one more homer, he could become the first player in MLB history to record 30 homers and 60 steals in the same season.
The National League MVP contender went 4 for 5 with five RBIs, four runs scored and two steals in the 14-4 triumph. He is now hitting .335 this season, despite having a National League high 601 plate appearances. He leads MLB with 119 runs scored and a .418 on-base percentage.
Braves third baseman Austin Riley also went 2 for 5 with a home run, three RBI and two runs scored in Monday’s victory. The Rockies (49-82) will host the Braves (85-45) again at 8:40 p.m. EDT Tuesday in Denver.
