PHILADELPHIA - Marcell Ozuna doesn’t look like a typical designated hitter in the Pirates’ clubhouse these days, and that’s the point.
The 35-year-old veteran, now in his 14th MLB season and Pittsburgh’s oldest player, has become a steady voice for a young team while he works to get his own bat back in gear. Ozuna even got the unusual honor of bringing out the lineup card in late June after asking manager Don Kelly for the chance, hoping to help spark the Pirates as they tried to get hot.
Ozuna’s role has shifted well beyond his limited playing time. He’s in the lineup only a few days a week and can’t play the field, but he has become the clear leader among the club’s Latin players and a guide for younger hitters like Oneil Cruz and Esmerlyn Valdez.
“I’m the older guy on the team, so I’m trying to give the advice that I know,” Ozuna said. “I’m just trying to keep in check with everyone and tell them the truth.
'Let’s see this and that, see if it can help you.' That’s what I do, taking care of everyone.”
That leadership comes while Ozuna is still chasing his own form at the plate. He owns a .610 OPS, but June offered some signs of life: two homers and a .263 batting average. In Pittsburgh’s 6-1 win over the Phillies on Thursday, his first game in July, he worked two walks, singled and struck out twice while seeing 25 pitches over five plate appearances.
The path back hasn’t been simple. Ozuna was a Gold Glove outfielder a decade ago, but right shoulder surgery in 2018 and a right hip injury he played through in 2025 have taken a toll on his defense. He signed a one-year, $12 million deal with Pittsburgh in February, arriving after finishing fourth in the NL MVP vote in 2024 and then stumbling into a rough start to 2026.
The hip injury from last year played a part in that decline, and Ozuna said he had to deal with a tear while also building bad habits at the plate. He says the hips no longer bother him; now the task is getting his swing back to where it belongs after pressing too hard early in the season.
Without everyday at-bats, that rhythm is harder to find. Ozuna knows the opportunities will be limited, so the key is making the most of the ones Kelly gives him - Kelly, his former teammate in Miami.
“My timing has been off,” Ozuna said. “It’s hard, because sometimes you miss.
You’re on the bench and it’s hard when you come in from the bench and you’re trying to do some damage because you haven’t seen a pitcher for a while. Just doing my work in the cage and then get back on track.”
There have been hints that the swing is starting to come around. On June 17 in West Sacramento, Ozuna singled to right-center and then unloaded on a Statcast-projected 448-foot homer. He followed that with singles in each of his next two games and another home run on June 26 against Cincinnati.
“As soon as I get inside the ball and hit it the other way, that’s when I become a good hitter,” Ozuna said. “I don’t rush. I just wait for my time, and when they give me the opportunity, I’ll be there.”
Ozuna’s influence stretches beyond the plate and into the daily life of the clubhouse. His two young sons are often around the Pirates’ room wearing his jersey, and he spends games standing on the top step. During pregame outfield work, he catches cut-off throws, and his locker is right next to Cruz and Valdez, two of Pittsburgh’s most powerful young bats.
Valdez said he grew up watching Ozuna in the Dominican Republic when Ozuna was starring for the Cardinals, and he sees plenty of similarities between them as right-handed power hitters.
“He’s always on my case about being on time,” Valdez said through translator Stephen Morales. “Look for good pitches. Don’t try to swing too hard.”
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