Pirates Release Big Offseason Free Agent Signing

August 06, 2026
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The Pittsburgh Pirates made some big offseason splashes before the 2026 campaign, spending the most money they had in years. Veteran slugger Marcell Ozuna was one of those signings, but he's turned out to be a big bust in Pittsburgh, and has now been released.

The Pirates signed the former All-Star and 40-HR slugger to a 1-year, $12 million contract in free agency. He had a $10.5M salary, and a mutual option of $16 million in 2027 with a $1.5 million buyout. Ozuna struggled all season with just eight HR and a career-worst .203 average and .613 OPS.

"Ultimately, we got to a point where we felt like the roster would just work better for us with a different player in that spot, someone who could just do some different things," said Pirates GM Ben Cherington. "That may continue to evolve, but his role continued to get smaller and it no longer made sense to carry him."

After back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024 in which he blasted 40 and 39 HRs, respectively, with 100+ RBIs each year and an OPS over .900, Ozuna slumped in 2025 with the Atlanta Braves to just 21 homers and a .756 OPS, and that took an even steeper decline this season.

It could be that we've seen the last of the 35-year-old, but he will no doubt try to land a job with another major league team going forward.


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