By John A. Tures, Professor of Political Science, LaGrange College

This week, with the Atlanta Braves having a big lead over the Miami Marlins, a night after a big win, Matt Olson crushed a two-run second-deck homer. Then, unsurprisingly, the Marlins’ pitcher hit Ronald Acuña. Braves fans have seen this movie before, so often that it’s become a rerun. And it’s a problem for the sport that Major League Baseball has to fix, before someone gets killed…again.

Marlins pitcher Ryan Gusto nailed Acuña with a 93.3 mph pitch. It probably would have done even more damage, except that the Braves slugger often wears bulky protection for his body, showing he has a good memory for all of the times that former pitcher Jose Urena threw at him.

Here’s the pitcher’s explanation of what happened.

“I threw a sinker in,” Gusto said. “It obviously ran off a little bit too far in real time. It looked like he kind of just dropped his hand or elbow right into the pitch. It looked like he got out of the way, and then at the last second, just moved into it, which is what I was trying to tell him when he was staring me down.”

Really, Ryan? For readers, please watch the video and judge for yourself whether Acuña actually “moved into it,” as Gusto contends. For good measure, see where the ball is in relation to the strike zone. And we also know there’s a history.

“The Marlins have hit Acuña with a pitch nine times during his career,” reports MLB.com. “No other team has plunked him more than five times.”

Benches cleared, but there was no fighting. Atlanta Manager Brian Snitker was tossed for objecting to the double-warning, instead of having the umpire hold the Miami Marlins accountable for starting the incident that nearly led to a fight.

A Marlins fan site claimed Acuña made a “spectacle” and claimed Gusto “had no reason to intentionally target Acuña.” It’s reminiscent of June, the prisoner from “Cell Block Tango” in the musical “Chicago” who claims “he ran into my knife. He ran into my knife ten times.”

But it’s a lot more than just a team with a grudge against a player who has hit .324 with 113 hits, 26 homers, 71 RBIs, and 91 runs scored in 94 games, as Acuña has hit against the Marlins, according to StatsMuse.

In fact, there are a lot of players getting plunked, as teamrankings.org reveals. The network WUSA has likened this surge in players being hit by a pitch to being more like “dodgeball” than “baseball.”

As FanGraphs.com has demonstrated, Hit By Pitch statistics have skyrocketed in recent years, both in absolute numbers and HBP per plate appearance. Not since the grudge matches of the early 1900s have we seen such dangers to player safety. But after All-Star Ray Chapman was killed by a pitch, and Mickey Cochrane suffered a triple skull fracture, reforms were made.

Looks like the sport needs them, as teams look for an edge by disabling the opponents’ stars, and pitchers whose only skill is heat without control. It’s time for MLB to make safety changes before some gets killed. It’s too late to stop the injuries from targeting, or simple incompetence.

Ejecting starters for throwing at a player would be a good first start, followed by suspensions and loss of playing time. Players who actually lean into pitches would be automatic outs, with ejections and suspensions for repeat offenses. It’s the only way to stop these acts that are not just hurting the players, but also hurting the game.

John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. His views are his own. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu or on “X” at @johntures2. His first book “Branded” will be coming out this Fall, published by Huntsville Independent Press (https://www.huntsvilleindependent.com/).