Acuña loves hearing boos from Mets fans: 'I get more confidence'

Ronald Acuña Jr. has officially reached villain status in Flushing, and he loves it.

The Atlanta Braves superstar continued his dominance over the New York Mets in Monday's 3-2 win by blasting a long third-inning homer off Paul Blackburn. Acuña drew plenty of boos from the Citi Field crowd as he thoroughly enjoyed his slow trot around the bases.

Acuña said postgame that he wanted Mets fans to know that the boos and jeers only served to fuel his fire.

"Honestly, it feels good," Acuña said through an interpreter, according to David O'Brien of The Athletic. "It feels like whenever I kind of hear those boos or anything ... it's hard to describe it, it's almost like I get more confidence, you know?"

Acuña is just the latest Braves star to become public enemy No. 1 in the franchise's rivalry with the Mets. Hall of Famer Chipper Jones had perhaps the most famous feud with the Flushing faithful, who'd taunt him with chants of his birth name, "Larry." Jones, who hit 49 career homers against the Mets, responded by naming one of his sons Shea, in honor of the Mets' former stadium.

The 27-year-old Acuña has picked up that mantle from Jones by torching Mets pitching throughout his career. He's a lifetime .305/.398/.528 hitter with 17 homers and 48 RBIs against New York and owns a .884 OPS with nine homers at Citi Field. Since debuting in 2018, Acuña has recorded more hits versus the Mets (104) than against any other opponent.

Monday's game continued what's turning into a brilliant comeback season for the 2023 NL MVP. Since completing rehab from a second torn ACL in late May, Acuña's hit .396/.500/.713 with nine homers, 14 extra-base hits, and 16 RBIs over 122 plate appearances.