Marcell

Ozuna

Ozuna signed a one-year, $12 million contract this offseason, but has only hit .203/.286/.327 with eight home runs, 29 RBI, and a 28.6 percent strikeout rate in 280 plate appearances. It was an interesting swing for the Pirates in free agency, but it just didn’t work out.

As has been the case more often than not lately, Ozuna finds himself on the pine with an opposing right-hander on the mound. Bryan Reynolds will serve as the team’s designated hitter while Jhostynxon Garcia will start in center field and bat ninth against Rhett Lowder and the Reds.

Ozuna smacked an RBI single off of Robert Gasser in the second inning that increased the Pirates’ lead to 2-0 before riding home on a two-run blast by Henry Davis. Ozuna then did some yard work of his own with a 338-foot (103.6-mph EV) solo shot off of Gasser to open the fourth inning. He has been a major disappointment overall for the Pirates this season, slashing just .205/.288/.305 with eight homers and 28 RBI.

Ozuna hit the homer a season-high 448 feet off of Scott Barlow in the seventh. He is 6-for-20 in limited action this month. The Pirates could up his playing time with Oneil Cruz on the IL. It’d at least seem to be a good idea to see what he can do in Coors Field this weekend.

Ozuna was responsible for two of the Pirates’ three hits on the night, and drove in Nick Gonzalez in the third inning to give the Pirates an early 3-1. lead. Ozuna has hit safely in four-straight games but is still struggling to find his power and is slashing just .196/.317/.275 in his last 15 games. There’s not much to get excited about here.

O’Hearn has gone 3-for-8 with one homer in a pair of games since returning from the injured list earlier this week. The 32-year-old takes a seat despite the presence of righty Spencer Arrighetti on the hill for Houston in this one. It’ll be Marcell Ozuna at DH as he draws his first start since May 27.

There hasn’t been any reporting concerning a potential physical issue or illness that Ozuna is dealing with. He remains stapled to Pittsburgh’s bench with Konnor Griffin limited to DH exclusively due to a forearm issue. It’s probably for the best since the 35-year-old has been scuffling recently, hitting .219 (16-for-73) with three homers and 27 strikeouts in 20 games since the start of May. It would make sense for the Pirates to give top prospect Esmerlyn Valdez some extended runway in the near future, especially if Ozuna doesn’t turn things around.

Ozuna got off to a rough start today, losing a challenge in the second inning on a pitch that barely caught the upper-left corner, but he went on to single in runs in the fourth and sixth innings. Following a brutal first month, he’s hitting a respectable .232/.368/.427 with three homers and 10 RBI through 15 games in May.

Jake Mangum gets the start in center. Ozuna takes a seat even though he is off to a nice start in May, having gone 6-for-19 with a homer, five RBI and three walks in five games.

Ozuna broke through with his first multi-hit game since April 18, collecting three hits, scoring three times, and driving in three runs as the Pirates blew out the Reds. The 35-year-old slugger is hitting .185/.254/.306 with three homers and 13 RBI across 118 plate appearances.