Longtime Braves DH Marcell Ozuna Makes Final Free Agent Decision

The Atlanta Braves saw their time with their All-Star DH officially come to an end after he signed elsewhere in the National League

Ozuna's time with the Braves is officially over | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Marcell Ozuna's time with the Atlanta Braves is officially over. First reported by the New York Post's Jon Heyman, he signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. It comes with a mutual option for 2027, and the deal is pending a physical.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported further details of the contract's structure. The first year of the contract will pay Ozuna $10.5 mllion in 2026. The option is worth $16 million, but it has a $1.5 million buyout, guaranteeing Ozuna at least $12 million.

Designated hitter Marcell Ozuna and the Pittsburgh Pirates are in agreement on a one-year, $12 million contract with a mutual option for 2027, sources tell ESPN. The deal will pay Ozuna $10.5M this year with a $16M option that has a $1.5M buyout. @JonHeyman was first on the news.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 9, 2026

The Pirates making the move for Ozuna had been materializing over at least the past week. MLB insider Mike Rodriguez initially reported that the Pirates, along with the Padres and the Rays, were in on Ozuna.

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Ozuna had been with the Braves since the 2020 season, starting as an outfielder before becoming their full-time designated hitter, once the National League fully adopted it. He was an All-Star in 2024 who finished fourth in MVP voting, but this most recent season delivered a quick blow to his future with the team.

He struggled with a hip injury for much of the season, and his production suffered. After he dealt with the nagging ailment, it makes sense why a deal would be pending a physical.

In 145 games, he batted .232 with a .756 OPS, 21 home runs and 68 RBIs. Overall, the numbers are a major drop-off, but still not bad. It requires looking beyond the overall numbers to get an idea of what did Ozuna in.

In June and July, he batted .181 with a .615 OPS. Apart from a surge in early August, these numbers hovered around there the rest of the way.

He ultimately stuck around after the trade deadline. There was some speculation that he could lift his no-trade clause to be moved. The Braves claim there wasn't the right offer. However, there was one MLB insider that put out on social media that he used his veto rights to stay in Atlanta.

During the Winter Meetings, manager Walt Weiss indicated that, at the time, bringing Ozuna back hadn't been ruled out. However, Mike Yastremski was brought in to fill the void shortly after. While he's not a full-time DH, he is expected to rotate between there and the outfield along with the other players that share his position.