Latest news with #MarcellOzuna
USA Today
an hour ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Braves vs. Phillies Tickets, First Pitch Time for Saturday, June 28
Braves vs. Phillies Tickets, First Pitch Time for Saturday, June 28 Marcell Ozuna and the Atlanta Braves square off against Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, June 28 at 7:15 p.m. ET, airing on FOX. Buy Braves Tickets on SeatGeek Buy Braves Tickets on StubHub Braves vs. Phillies Game Info Game day: Saturday, June 28, 2025 Saturday, June 28, 2025 Game time: 7:15 p.m. ET 7:15 p.m. ET TV channel: FOX FOX Live Stream: Watch LIVE with Fubo! (Regional restrictions may apply) Watch LIVE with Fubo! Location: Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta, Georgia Stadium: Truist Park Truist Park Braves Starter: TBA TBA Phillies Starter: TBA Braves vs. Phillies Tickets For Sale Braves vs. Phillies offensive insights The Braves rank 14th in Major League Baseball with 63 home runs. Fueled by 151 extra-base hits, Atlanta ranks 20th in MLB with a .382 slugging percentage this season. The Braves have a team batting average of .243 this season, which ranks 16th among MLB teams. The Phillies average 1.1 home runs per game to rank 11th in MLB action with 67 total home runs. This season, Philadelphia ranks ninth in baseball with a .405 slugging percentage. The Phillies have the fifth-best batting average in the league (.256). Watch MLB on Fubo Braves' top hitters Ozuna's batting average this year is .274, and he has a .418 on-base percentage and a .457 slugging percentage. He has 10 homers and 25 RBI, plus 28 runs scored. His strikeout rate is 22.1%, and his walk rate is 19.7%. In 2025, Matt Olson's batting average is .237, to go along with a .335 on-base percentage and a .451 slugging percentage. He has 12 homers and 31 RBI, plus 34 runs scored. His strikeout rate is 23.8%, and his walk rate is 12.7%. Ozzie Albies' current batting average is .232, and he has six home runs and 23 RBI, plus 30 runs scored and six steals on seven attempts. His strikeout rate is 15.5%, and his walk rate is 8.5%. He has a .302 on-base percentage, and a .343 slugging percentage. Also for the Braves, Austin Riley's batting average is .270, with a .328 on-base percentage and a .434 slugging percentage. He has 10 homers and 33 RBI, plus 31 runs scored. His strikeout rate is 27.2%, and his walk rate is 6.8%. Phillies' top hitters Kyle Schwarber is hitting .260/.389/.565 this season with a walk rate of 15.9% and a K rate of 24.4%. Additionally, he's popped 19 homers while driving in 44 runs and scoring 44 times. Plus, he's stolen four bases on five attempts. In 266 plate appearances, Trea Turner has cracked seven bombs, driven in 28 runs, and scored 41 times while hitting .300/.357/.444. He's also swiped 16 bags on 21 attempts. His strikeout rate is 17.7%, and his walk rate is 7.1%. So far this season, Harper has cracked nine bombs, knocked in 34 runs, and scored 32 times while batting .263/.373/.455 in 249 plate appearances. He's also stolen eight bags on eight attempts. His K rate comes in at 17.7%, and his walk rate is 14.1%. At the dish, Nick Castellanos is batting .276/.320/.414 with six homers, 31 RBI and 28 runs scored. He's striking out 18.2% of the time and walking at a 5.5% rate. Braves' injuries Stuart Fairchild: 10 Day IL (Finger), Joe Jimenez: 60 Day IL (Knee), AJ Smith-Shawver: 60 Day IL (Calf/elbow), Ignacio Alvarez: 60 Day IL (Wrist), Reynaldo López: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Daysbel Hernández: day-to-day (Arm) Phillies' injuries Aaron Nola: 15 Day IL (Ankle), J.T. Realmuto: day-to-day (Groin) Buy Braves Tickets on SeatGeek Buy Braves Tickets on StubHub
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Phillies Land Braves' Marcell Ozuna to Solve Outfield Issues in Trade Idea
Phillies Land Braves' Marcell Ozuna to Solve Outfield Issues in Trade Idea originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Philadelphia Phillies need a centerfielder. With the options they have in right and left field, it'd make sense if the Phillies go after a center fielder at the trade deadline. Advertisement However, with this team in its current position and needing to win a World Series within the next year or two before the core continues to age, there's reason to believe that Dave Dombrowski could pursue the best player available. If that's the case, Jeff Passan of ESPN recently suggested that Atlanta Braves outfielder Marcell Ozuna could be available. Yes, the Phillies and Braves trading together might not be too likely, but the Phillies have the farm system to get the job done if Atlanta is willing to send him to Philadelphia. Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson (59) makes a pitching change during the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citizens Bank Hartline-Imagn Images 'There's a chance Alex Anthopoulos, Atlanta's aggressive president of baseball operations, sees this season not as an anomaly but as a continuation of last year and entertains moving one of the Braves' core players. Absent that, in Ozuna, an impending free agent, the Braves have perhaps the best bat that could be available,' he wrote. Advertisement The Phillies and Ozuna would have to get creative in the outfield, which is a bit of a worry given that he isn't a great defender. However, it's tough to ignore what he can do offensively. He currently leads the National League in walks and has 10 home runs, 25 RBI, and a 153 OPS+. After hitting 39 home runs in 2024 and 40 in 2020, the 34-year-old is set to get a huge payday this winter. If the Braves don't plan on being the team that gives him that money, they might be willing to move him for a big haul. Related: Phillies' Matt Strahm Sends Four-Word Message Amid Jeff Hoffman Decision This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Times
10 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Marcell Ozuna chooses to play through hip injury, and Braves need him badly
ATLANTA — Marcell Ozuna was the Atlanta Braves' best and most consistent hitter for most of two calendar years beginning in early May 2023. He was the second-best designated hitter in baseball during that period, surpassing all except Shohei Ohtani. That's why it was so noticeable when Ozuna suddenly became as streaky as most of the Braves' other key hitters, after injuring his right hip in mid-April. Advertisement The Braves had him skip a three-game series at Toronto in mid-April when they sent him for an MRI following their previous series at Tampa. But otherwise, Ozuna, the NL walks leader with 48 before Wednesday, has stayed in the lineup and remained productive while playing through varying degrees of pain. 'I'm trying to help my team,' he said. 'That's the most important thing, so I want to be in the lineup every day.' Ozuna had 10 hits, a .278 average and .395 OBP in his past 10 games before Wednesday night's rain-delayed game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but Ozuna had only one extra-base hit — a homer — and one RBI in that span, along with 12 strikeouts in 36 at-bats. That followed a nine-game span in which he hit .344 with four homers, 11 RBIs and a 1.200 OPS. Before that torrid stretch, Ozuna slumped for 12 games from April 29 to May 11, hitting .163 with one RBI and a .517 OPS. And before that, he hit .324 with two homers and a .996 OPS in a 10-game span, including eight wins from April 18-28. In other words, it's been a roller coaster lately for Ozuna while he's played with the hip aching at times, causing him to limp. It contrasts entirely with the previous two years, when he rarely slumped for more than a few games. Still, Ozuna had a .420 on-base percentage before Wednesday, and the burly slugger continued to be a presence in a lineup that hasn't exactly struck fear in opposing pitchers this season. The Braves lost nine of 12 games before Wednesday and were 16th in the majors in OPS (.704) and tied with the Baltimore Orioles for 19th in slugging percentage (.387). Ozuna, 34, said he wants to continue playing every day, and the Braves think, or at least hope, that he can manage the injury as a DH. He's in the option year of his contract and is eligible for free agency after the season. Advertisement 'I've talked to him,' Braves manager Brian Snitker said. 'And he seems to be running a lot better than he was (a couple of weeks ago). You get in those situations sometimes where he wants to be out there, he wants to be a part of this. Hopefully, he can manage it. Is it affecting him? Probably. He's a big, strong man that rotates and fires (in his swing).' Snitker said he was worried that the MRI would reveal an injury that required season-ending surgery. It showed inflammation and what Ozuna said was a tear, but nothing to stop him from playing, as long as he could handle any discomfort triggered by some movements in the batter's box or by sprinting and lunging. 'Something like that, I think if you fix it (surgically), you're going to miss a significant amount of time,' Snitker said. 'But as long as he can manage it and learn to deal with it, we'll go with him.' Although his production has slipped by his recent lofty standards, Ozuna is still contributing plenty. He entered Wednesday batting .278 with an .884 OPS, even if he was not swinging the bat as frequently or with as much force. Ozuna ranked third in the league in OBP (behind the Dodgers' duo of Freddie Freeman and Will Smith). He was tied with Austin Riley for second among Braves with 10 homers and fourth on the team with 25 RBIs in 56 games. Despite his decreased power numbers this season, Ozuna entered Wednesday with a 149 OPS+ that would tie for the second-best of his career in a full season. A year ago, Ozuna finished with a .302 average, 39 homers and 104 RBIs and a career-best 154 OPS+. 'Yeah, (the hip) is going to be a factor the entire year, but Marcell's tough,' Braves general manager and president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said. 'He's playing through it. He's still performing. He wants to stay in there. He is a very durable player. He's still a productive player. Advertisement 'But you know, it's one of those things that he's going to have to manage and get to the offseason (before it can heal).' Anthopoulos said Ozuna was instructed to avoid aggravating it further by running hard on every grounder or fly ball that he hits, that kind of thing. 'We've told him, be judicious on the base paths and so on,' Anthopoulos said. 'So if you see him at some point, (not trying to beat out) a routine ground ball, he might be saving his bullets from that standpoint.' Anthopoulos compared the situation to that of reliever Joe Jiménez, who continued to pitch through knee pain last season and was the Braves' top setup man, then had surgery after the postseason. That cartilage injury was worse than expected, and Jiménez could miss all or most of this season rehabbing. 'He pitched through a lot of stuff and he pitched at a high level, and he was great. We don't make the (2024) postseason without his contributions, there's no doubt about it,' Anthopoulos said. 'So I think you really respect and admire those guys. But it's something that (Ozuna) was adamant about and he wants to do. And his OPS is in the high to mid-.800s, his numbers are still phenomenal.' Ozuna's .278 average before Wednesday was five points above his career average over 13 seasons, but Ozuna said the hip hasn't been the only thing keeping him from chasing a fourth season with a .300 average or higher. 'The umpiring is terrible this season,' he said. 'They've been calling so many balls strikes, how (can) you can hit .300 like that?' Ozuna, aka 'Big Bear,' remains both indefatigable and outspoken, and his teammates admire him for it. And they hope he can keep playing through pain. (Top photo of Marcell Ozuna: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Braves' Marcell Ozuna drops truth bomb on injury battle
The post Braves' Marcell Ozuna drops truth bomb on injury battle appeared first on ClutchPoints. Amid a disappointing 27-31 start that has the Atlanta Braves stuck in fourth place in the NL East, Atlanta is back in the spotlight—but not for anything happening on the field. A stunning injury revelation from veteran slugger Marcell Ozuna has added yet another layer of concern to a season already slipping away. According to a report from The Athletic's David O'Brien, the Atlanta DH has been battling a torn right hip—an issue that had been kept under wraps until now. Advertisement Early in the season, fans noticed subtle changes in how Ozuna was used late in games. Despite his strong offensive output, the team often pulled him on the bases. The explanation, it turns out, is far more serious than simple fatigue. The 34-year-old admitted he's been pushing through a hip issue for weeks. 'I've been kind of slow because I don't want to rotate, because my hip is kind of shut down a little bit,' Ozuna said. 'I had a tear (in the) right hip, so I just … keep battling. I'm trying to help my team. That's the most important thing. I want to be in the lineup every single day, and do everything for my team.' The injury has prompted questions about the Braves lineup and overall management strategy. General Manager Alex Anthopoulos noted that while Ozuna will continue to play, he'll have to manage the injury for the rest of the season. Despite minimal rest, Ozuna continues to deliver with a .284 batting average, 10 home runs, and a .901 OPS—production that ranks among the league's top designated hitters. This situation could affect more than just game-to-game availability. With Ozuna in the final year of his deal, MLB trade rumors are heating up. If Atlanta falters further in the standings, moving their designated hitter—despite his injury—could net key prospects for a reset. Advertisement Fans and analysts are frustrated by the lack of transparency. The team first called Ozuna's injury minor inflammation. Only now has the real issue—a torn hip—been revealed. The poor communication stands out in a season already filled with setbacks for Atlanta. Jurickson Profar is suspended, and Ronald Acuña Jr. just returned on May 23rd after nearly a year recovering from a torn ACL. While the Braves continue to lean on Ozuna's bat, his health casts a long shadow over both the rest of the season and what comes next.
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Business
- Newsweek
Braves Face Brutal Marcell Ozuna Decision After Injury News
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Atlanta Braves have endured a disappointing start to the season and things might have just gotten worse. After opening the year without superstars Ronald Acuna Jr. or Spencer Strider, the Braves limped to a 27-31 record going into Tuesday and they sit in fourth place in the National League East division, in serious danger of seeing their playoff streak come to an end. And now another one of their best players is dealing with a significant injury. "I've been kind of slow because I don't want to rotate, because my hip is kind of shut down a little bit," Marcell Ozuna revealed amid a marked power drought at the plate, per David O'Brien of The Athletic. "I had a tear (in the) right hip, so I just ... keep battling. I'm trying to help my team." Though Ozuna is committed to staying in the lineup, the Braves might be forced into a brutal decision for the fan favorite, particularly given his contract situation. After signing a four-year, $65 million deal with the Braves, Ozuna is on a final season with the team before he has the chance to become a free agent. ATLANTA, GA - MAY 06: Marcell Ozuna #20 of the Atlanta Braves signs an autograph after the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Park on May 6, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Matthew... ATLANTA, GA - MAY 06: Marcell Ozuna #20 of the Atlanta Braves signs an autograph after the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Park on May 6, 2025 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./) More Grimes/Getty Facing a significant injury and that contract status, the Braves might opt to move Ozuna out of the lineup in the near future or, ultimately, cut ties with him at the end of the year. "Given his injury, it just feels like malpractice to keep running him out there every single (day) when you have two bats in Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin that are vying for playing time at the moment," Eric Cole pointed out for FanSided. "In addition to the short-term concerns, there is the matter of Ozuna's long-term future with the Braves to consider. ... With the slugger now dealing with a hip injury which can be serious and can linger, one wonders if the chances of re-signing Ozuna (even if the team wanted to) have also taken a major hit." One way or another, the news of Ozuna's malady could lead to a harsh move in Atlanta as the season slips away. More MLB: Dodgers $136.5 Million Ace 'Frustrated' By Lack of Progression During Rehab
