It is time for the Atlanta Braves to admit defeat and begin to give up on the 2025 season. The team continues to reach new lows sitting double-digit games below .500 and unable to consistently beat the worst teams in the league. While a big piece of this is on the shoulders of the front office, it was impossible to predict this level of injuries or regression from key players. This includes star designated hitter Marcell Ozuna who continues his recent slide.
Things have gotten bad enough that manager Brian Snitker opted to bench Ozuna for a game and put Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin both into the lineup. It is a move fans have been calling for, but one that didn't change the results of Atlanta's continued misery. All of this adds up to the unavoidable fact that it is time to turn the page on Ozuna's tenure with the Braves.
The Braves Must Part Ways With Marcell Ozuna
Atlanta's season is over and with this comes a level of responsibility to trade away expiring contracts and players who won't help you win in the 2026 season. Ozuna is included in this based on the veteran's expiring contract. With the up-and-down nature of his tenure with the Braves, it is hard to argue against making a change. If both Baldwin and Murphy are going to be retained moving into next season there isn't a roster spot for the veteran.
It is time to either send Ozuna to the IL due to the hip injury or find the DH a landing spot with a contender. The recent lack of offensive production has tanked what value the aging hitter had as a rental. However, the Braves owe it to Ozuna to give the hitter a chance to contribute to a winning team if he is going to continue to play through the hip injury.
Ozuna's time in Atlanta will be remembered for the last two seasons of offensive dominance. This was after things grew so dark the team was considering releasing a giant contract simply to get the veteran out of the lineup. While things turned around and the veteran has become a popular figure in Atlanta it is time to turn the page.
Whether this means a stint on the injured list followed by free agency, or opting to trade Ozuna it is time. The Braves season reaching new levels of misery serves as a reminder of this and likely is going to end the veteran's time in Atlanta.