New Pittsburgh Pirates slugger Marcell Ozuna sees a mentor role, eager to guide talented but inconsistent Oneil Cruz toward stardom.
Carlos Santana spent just four months of his 16-year career playing with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
However, that brief 94-game stint in 2023 left an impression on the switch-hitting first baseman. Santana has often said he didn’t want to be traded that season to the Milwaukee Brewers and would love to play for the Pirates again.
The chances of Santana, who signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks as a free agent last week, coming back to Pittsburgh seem slim. He is 39, and Spencer Horwitz has established himself as the primary first baseman.
Santana still thinks so highly of the Pirates that he recruited designated hitter Marcell Ozuna to sign with Pittsburgh in free agency. Ozuna and the Pirates finalized a one-year, $12-million contract on Monday before the first full-squad spring training workout in Bradenton, Fla.
“Santana talked to me right away,” Ozuna told reporters in Bradenton on Monday, referring to a conversation between the Dominican Republic natives at the beginning of the offseason.
Another reason Ozuna was intrigued by Pittsburgh is the presence of center fielder Oneil Cruz, another Dominican. Ozuna and Cruz are both represented by Creative Artists Agency.
Cruz is one of the most talented players in the major leagues. However, the 27-year-old has been wildly inconsistent in both his results and his effort.
Cruz led the Pirates with 20 home runs and topped the National League with 38 home runs last season, but hit just. 200/.298/.378 in 135 games. Ozuna believes he can help Cruz reach the stardom that has long been predicted.
“He’s a young guy, and he needs to learn more about baseball,” Ozuna said. “I think he’s going to listen to me. We’ll see. If he follows me, he’s going to be all right. If he does the work that we’re going to do, maybe he can do some damage this year, more than in the past.”
Osuna, 35, had a .232/.355/.400 slash line with 21 home runs in 145 games last season with the Atlanta Braves. However, he had 40 homers in 2023 and 39 in 2024 for the Braves.
Over his 13-year career, Ozuna is a .269/.336/.469 hitter with 296 homers in 1,614 games with the Miami Marlins (2013-17), St. Louis Cardinals (2018-19), and Braves (2020-25). Despite being just four home runs away from 300, Ozuna has gone deep only once in 156 plate appearances at PNC Park.
Though Ozuna’s new home ballpark can be tough on right-handed hitters, he says he is not concerned about home runs being lost because of the 410-foot notch in left-center field.
“Every park that you go to, you have to play the game,” Ozuna said. “I don’t mind hitting a homer in any park. It’s no big deal. I’ll hit a homer anywhere.”
Pirates Roundtable also offers a fan community and message board. We’d love to have you join us to talk all things Pirates. Click the “Join” button at the top of the page to join our community for free.