Ozuna went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and a pair of walks in Wednesday's 4-3 loss to the Nationals.
Ozuna cut Atlanta's deficit to 4-2 in the eighth inning with a 404-foot blast off Jackson Rutledge. It was Ozuna's 21st homer of the year and his first in 33 games. It's been a disappointing year overall for the 34-year-old Ozuna, though he's swung the bat better of late, going 13-for-42 (.310) with an .884 OPS in his last 12 contests.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Resting Saturday
Rotowire
Ozuna isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Detroit.
Ozuna will retreat to the dugout Saturday after going 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Friday's series opener. Drake Baldwin will replace him as Atlanta's designated hitter, allowing Sandy Leon to start at catcher.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Drives in three in big win
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Ozuna went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBI in Wednesday's 9-4 win over the Nationals.
The veteran DH has fallen to eighth in the order in most of Atlanta's recent lineups, but he was able to make an impact from that spot Wednesday with a two-run single in the sixth inning and an RBI double in the eighth. The RBI were his first since Aug. 26, and Ozuna has gone 28 games without a home run, leaving him stalled at 20 on the season. His bat has been showing signs of life of late, however -- he's batting .360 (9-for-25) over his last seven contests with four doubles.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Sitting out first game
Rotowire
Ozuna is not in the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Nationals.
Atlanta will go with Ronald Acuna in the designated-hitter spot and Eli White in right field for the first game of the twin bill. Ozuna will likely be back in the lineup for the nightcap.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: On bench Saturday
Rotowire
Ozuna isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against Seattle.
Ozuna will retreat to the bench Saturday after going 1-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts in Friday's series opener. Drake Baldwin will work as Atlanta's designated hitter instead with Sean Murphy behind the plate.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Sitting out third straight
Rotowire
Ozuna is not in the lineup for Monday's game versus the Cubs.
Ozuna will take a seat for the third straight game and for the fourth time over the past six contests. Jurickson Profar will serve as Atlanta's designated hitter, and Jake Fraley will play left field while Ozuna is on the bench. Atlanta could continue to rotate multiple players in at DH down the stretch, resulting in unsteady playing time for Ozuna.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: On bench again Sunday
Rotowire
Ozuna is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Phillies.
It's the second straight lineup absence for Ozuna, who is batting .108 (4-for-37) over his past 12 games and is without a homer since Aug. 13. Ronald Acuna is resting his legs as the designated hitter Sunday, which opens up right field for Eli White.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Not starting Saturday
Rotowire
Ozuna isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Phillies.
Ozuna will retreat to the dugout to begin Saturday's contest after going 1-for-6 with a walk and two strikeouts over the first two games of the series. Sean Murphy will act as Atlanta's designated hitter while batting sixth.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Taking seat Wednesday
Rotowire
Ozuna is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in Miami.
Ozuna has followed a hot stretch with another slump, having gone 3-for-30 with 13 strikeouts over his last nine contests. He'll get a day off to regroup while Ronald Acuna serves as Atlanta's designated hitter and Jake Fraley (knee) plays right field.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Stays hot Sunday
Rotowire
Ozuna went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 7-1 win over the Marlins.
Ozuna provided Atlanta with key insurance via a 422-foot homer in the seventh inning. The 34-year-old has now gone deep four times in as many games, racking up six hits and eight RBI in that span. He's slashing .240/.369/.427 with 19 homers, 56 RBI and 47 runs scored this season and should remain the team's primary DH amid his recent hot streak.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Belts pair of homers Saturday
Rotowire
Ozuna went 2-for-4 with a pair of home runs and four total RBI during an 8-6 victory against the Marlins in a the second game of Saturday's doubleheader.
Ozuna didn't play in Game 1 but got the start at DH while batting cleanup in Game 2. He certainly did clean up, rocking Miami starter Sandy Alcantara for a pair of homers amounting to four total runs across the fourth and fifth frames. Ozuna has five home runs and 11 RBI across his past 11 contests, helping his case to remain Atlanta's regular DH after losing his grip on that role at times this season. He's started four of the team's past five games following a three-game stretch out of the lineup between Aug. 2 and Aug. 5.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Belts 16th homer
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Ozuna went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's win over the Marlins.
The veteran slugger went back-to-back with Drake Baldwin in the first inning off Eury Perez, staking Atlanta to an early 2-0 lead. Ozuna has finally gotten hot at the plate after a brutal first half of the season, and over his last nine games he's batting .333 (8-for-24) with three of his 16 homers on the year.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Draws three walks in win
Rotowire
Ozuna went 1-for-2 with three walks, three runs scored and an RBI in Thursday's 12-11 extra-inning win over the Reds.
The veteran designated hitter was widely expected to get shipped out by Atlanta at the trade deadline, but the deadline came and went without a deal in place to send Ozuna to a contender. He's started four straight games -- three against left-handers and one against a righty -- and even hit cleanup Thursday, going 4-for-13 with two home runs, six RBI and a 6:1 BB:K during that span. However, his .235/.365/.399 slash line on the season and the remaining money on his $16 million salary for 2025 was apparently enough to deter teams from submitting a trade offer that Atlanta found palatable. With no reason to showcase the 34-year-old any further, Ozuna could slip back into a bench role while catchers Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy get more work at designated hitter the rest of the way.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Goes yard again Tuesday
Rotowire
Ozuna went 2-for-4 with a walk, a home run and three RBI in Tuesday's loss to the Royals.
The veteran DH has started three of the last four games as he gets showcased for a potential trade, and Ozuna has done his part to boost his value by going yard in back-to-back contests. Four of his 15 homers on the season have come in July, but he only has eight total hits on the month, batting .167 (8-for-48) over 17 games.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Clubs 14th homer
Rotowire
Ozuna went 1-for-3 with two walks and a two-run home run in Monday's win over the Royals.
The 34-year-old slugger put Atlanta in the lead for good with his fourth-inning shot off Rich Hill. It was Ozuna's 14th homer of the year and third in his last 10 games, but it might also end up being his last for the team with the trade deadline looming. Despite the recent uptick in power, Ozuna still hasn't rediscovered the form that saw him post a .916 OPS over the prior two seasons -- he has only one other hit over that 10-game stretch, and through 404 plate appearances in 2025 he's slashing just .233/.361/.393.
Ozuna is starting at DH and batting seventh Saturday against the Rangers.
This will be just the second start of the second half for Ozuna, and his first since Sunday. The veteran slugger is having a down year with a .751 OPS through 94 contests, and he's consequently lost his everyday role. Atlanta has been keeping the bats of backstops Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy in the lineup together by using one at DH in most games.
Ozuna is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Giants.
With Ozuna maintaining a lowly .562 OPS since June 1, Atlanta looks to be viewing him as a reserve bat at this point. He'll be on the bench for the fifth time in six games since the All-Star break, with manager Brian Snitker electing to use one of Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy at designated hitter while the other catches. Rather than regaining his role as Atlanta's regular DH, Ozuna looks more likely to be playing elsewhere by the time the July 31 trade deadline passes. Hector Gomez of Z101Digital.com reported late Tuesday that trade talks between Atlanta and San Diego have "intensified," with the Padres said to be "very interested" in acquiring the three-time All-Star.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Says he's over hip issue
Rotowire
Ozuna said after Sunday's 4-2 loss to the Yankees that he's no longer bothered by the sore hip that was affecting his performance earlier in the season, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports. "It was my hip earlier this season, but now I feel fantastic," Ozuna said. "I just lost my confidence at the plate. I just lost my timing, and that's what I've been battling. As soon as I get my timing back, everything's coming like last year and the year before."
The veteran slugger has lost his regular spot in the starting lineup while Atlanta has been using either Sean Murphy or Drake Baldwin at designated hitter on their non-catching days, and Ozuna's .139/.262/.333 slash line through 42 plate appearances in July, including an 0-for-4 effort Sunday, doesn't make much of a case for him to regain his job. He also acknowledged the trade rumors surrounding him as the team's playoff odds continue to shrink, but Ozuna didn't give any hint as to whether he would use his 10-and-5 rights to veto a potential deal. Until he shows signs of life at the plate, Ozuna's fantasy value and value as a trade asset will both be low.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Back in lineup Sunday
Rotowire
Ozuna will start at designated hitter and bat sixth Sunday versus the Yankees.
Ozuna was withheld from the lineup in each of Atlanta's previous three contests in what appears to be a performance-related benching, but he'll back in the starting nine for the series finale versus New York. His exit from the lineup came as Atlanta prioritized getting its two catchers -- Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin -- into the lineup. Baldwin is getting the nod at catcher Sunday while Murphy is receiving rest, allowing Ozuna to at least temporarily reclaim his role at DH.
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Braves' Marcell Ozuna: Sitting third straight
Rotowire
Ozuna isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Yankees.
Ozuna will miss a third consecutive start at DH on Saturday, as Atlanta appears to have pivoted to using catchers Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy in the lineup simultaneously. The 34-year-old Ozuna owns a .762 OPS this season -- his lowest since 2022 -- and could be shipped to another team before the July 31 trade deadline, though it's worth noting he has 10-and-5 rights and can veto any potential trade.
