The Pittsburgh Pirates have come to terms with free agent slugger Marcell Ozuna on a 1 year, $12M contract with a mutual option for 2027.
The deal, which is currently pending a physical, adds a proven bat to the Pirates lineup ahead of the team’s first official day of activities on Wednesday February 11th. Ozuna will receive $10.5M in salary in 2026, with a $1.5M buyout, and a $16M option for 2027.
Pittsburgh hit just 117 home runs in 2025, which was the lowest total in the Major Leagues by a sizeable margin. The hope is that Ozuna can add some offence into the Bucs lineup, having averaged 30 homers per season over the course of his 13 year big league career.
The 35 year old began his career with the Marlins back in 2013 as a 22 year old, before landing in St. Louis in 2018. After two seasons with the Cardinals, he joined the Braves organization where he spent 6 years, hitting 148 home runs over that span. Only Shohei Ohtani and Kyle Schwarber hit more homers as a DH during that period.
His addition also helps balance out a left hand heavy lineup for the Pirates as well. The club added former All-Stars Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn this offseason in an effort to jumpstart their bats, though both are lefties.
Pittsburgh’s front office has been unusually active this winter, bringing in 3 veteran pieces who figure to play prominent roles with the team in 2026. Additionally, the team was also linked to Eugenio Suarez, and Schwarber prior to them signing contracts with teams elsewhere.
In signing Ozuna, there’s a good chance that franchise icon Andrew McCutchen’s playing days with the club may be over. The 39 year old who hit just .239 last season as the team’s primary DH remains unsigned as of this writing.
Photo: D. Benjamin Miller. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication.