Two familiar names have landed on the market for the Braves to think about, and both come with the same basic appeal: right-handed power and a history in Atlanta. Jorge Soler was released yesterday. Marcell Ozuna followed today.
Ozuna’s release came after a rough season in Pittsburgh, where he hit .203 with eight home runs and 29 RBIs. The bat that once made him such a dangerous middle-order force has not shown up often enough this year, and his power production has dropped off hard.
That matters because the Braves still have room to ask whether another slugging right-handed hitter makes sense, even after bringing in Lane Thomas at the deadline. Alex Anthopoulos has never been shy about a reunion, and Ozuna’s name fits that pattern.
Soler and Ozuna are both designated hitters, and neither has much business playing the field. Both are also struggling, which is why they’re available now.
Soler’s power may still be there, but he has had trouble staying above the Mendoza Line this season. Ozuna, meanwhile, is barely over it himself and has seen his pop fade.
The Braves would probably be better off not getting sentimental about this kind of move. But that’s not really how this front office operates.
There’s also the Ha-Seong Kim question hanging over the roster. If the Braves were loaded with clearly defined roles and obvious everyday answers, this wouldn’t even be a discussion. But it’s fair to wonder what Kim is giving them beyond the fact that he is being paid a lot of money.
Anthopoulos and Walt Weiss have both said Jim Jarvis will stay the primary shortstop, with Mauricio Dubon handling the position against left-handed pitching. That leaves Kim without a clear path to regular at-bats, and he does not offer much as a bench piece. He isn’t a speed threat, he doesn’t look like a game-changer with one swing, and his defense at shortstop has been putrid this season.
If Kim is not starting, then the Braves are basically burning a roster spot because they can’t admit the offseason investment was too heavy. In that case, taking a chance on a power bat with some good memories in Atlanta starts to make a lot more sense.
In Other News...
BravesVision Is Raising A Bigger Question For Atlanta Fans
The Braves latest financial update showed a familiar split picture, with baseball operations holding steady enough and the bigger business around Truist Park continuing to broaden the clubs footprint. Total revenue for the second quarter came in at $305 million, while the first half of 2026 reached $377 million, and the mixed-use development tied to the ballpark remained a bright spot with another solid gain. For fans, that broader growth still reinforces how much the organization has leaned into the business side of being a modern MLB club.
BravesVision, though, is the part worth watching a little more closely. Media-related revenue dipped from the previous year, a reminder that not every piece of the entertainment-and-advertising machine is moving in the same direction, even as the team expects improvement by the end of 2026. The shift comes as the Braves navigate slower payout timing and take on more of the advertising sales work themselves, so the next few months will say a lot about whether that stream stabilizes as planned. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Rotation Trouble Could Cost Them A Top Pitching Prospect
The Braves stayed quiet on the pitching front at the trade deadline, choosing not to make a major rotation fix while also hanging on to most of their top prospects. That leaves Atlanta in the familiar spot of trying to thread a needle between protecting the future and patching a major league staff that still needs help, especially when the organization has been careful about parting with its best position-player talent.
Cam Caminiti has already emerged as the name to watch in that discussion after the season, with the club increasingly viewed as more willing to use pitching prospects as trade currency than its premium bats. If Atlanta does decide to chase a rotation upgrade in a bigger deal, the real question may not be whether it moves a prospect, but which arm it is willing to put on the table. [Read more 🡒]