Reds can't let one disastrous Pirates experiment fool them twice

There was a time when the Cincinnati Reds were heavily interested in Marcell Ozuna. During the 2019-2020 offseason, the Reds pursued the free-agent slugger intently and reportedly offered him a three-year, $50 million contract. He ultimately chose to sign a one-year deal with the Atlanta Braves.

Ozuna parlayed his success in 2020 — a season in which he led the league in home runs and RBI — into a five-year deal with the Braves the following winter. He struggled in 2021 and 2022, but bounced back in 2023 and went to the All-Star Game in 2024. But he scuffled once again last season and became a free agent this past offseason.

After the Reds took Eugenio Suárez off the free-agent board in February, the Pittsburgh Pirates pivoted and signed Ozuna to a one-year, $12 million deal. But his production has come nowhere close to matching his price tag. In 70 games this season, Ozuna is hitting .203/.286/.327 with a 68 OPS+ and is striking out nearly 30% of the time.

Ozuna's been a part-time player for the better part of two months, and on Wednesday, he became a free agent once again. The Pirates, admitting defeat, released Ozuna after calling up outfielder Ronny Simon.

The Reds trade deadline performance this past week was a disaster. Not only did Nick Krall and Co. trade away Nathaniel Lowe — arguably their best hitter against right-handed pitching — but they didn't make a single addition despite the fact they're obviously attempting to make a magical run during the second half and return to the postseason.

The Reds must stay far away from former Pirates DH Marcell Ozuna

Heading into play on Wednesday, the Reds are five games back in the chase for the final NL Wild Card spot, and according to FanGraphs, have a meager 1.9% chance to make the playoffs in 2026.

Under no circumstances, however, can the Reds be tempted by their previous infatuation with Ozuna. This is the second year in a row he's under performed, and Cincinnati has a number of young players who need reps over the final two months of the season.

The Reds were already duped by the Pirates last summer. Pittsburgh fooled Krall and the front office into trading for Ke'Bryan Hayes, and they're still paying the price for that blunder. There's no need to double down on such a silly notion. Let someone else sign Ozuna.

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