St. Louis Cardinals: What Can we expect from Marcell Ozuna in 2018?
By Phil Akre
A season ago with the Miami Marlins, Marcell Ozuna was a dark horse candidate for the NL MVP award. Now with the St. Louis Cardinals, is Ozuna primed for another strong season?
The 2017 offseason purge of the Miami Marlins took the last of whatever talent was left in South Beach to places like St. Louis, Milwaukee, Seattle and New York.The St. Louis Cardinals, in particular, gained perhaps one of the best pieces in not only Miami but all of Major League Baseball in Marcell Ozuna.
The Dominican Republic-native finished the 2017 season as one of baseball’s best outfielders, with a line of .312/.376/.548. His .312 average was better than the likes of Nolan Arenado, D.J. LeMahieu and Ozuna’s former teammate, Dee Gordon.
Ozuna flashed immense power, too, as he drove in 124 run’s and clubbed 37 home run’s, both good for third best in the National League.
The Cardinals, taking advantage of the Marlins’ fire sale, quickly jumped on the chance to have one of the game’s true underrated stars. Sandy Alcantara and Magneuris Sierra were the highlights of the return, both of whom are now top 10 prospects of the Marlins.
St. Louis Cardinals
For the Cardinals, getting Ozuna was a no-brainer. He almost immediately becomes the team’s best power hitter, as his 37 home runs surpass Paul DeJong‘s team-high of 25 from last season.
Ozuna’s 124 RBI’s are 42 more than Yadier Molina‘s 82 from a season ago, too.
The former Marlin will benefit from playing consistently against the NL Central opponents, as he hit .285 against them last season.
Additionally, he hit .333, .308 and .273 in PNC Park, Miller Park and Wrigley Field last season, respectively.
Perhaps most importantly, he’s done well in Busch Stadium. Over the past two seasons there, Ozuna has slashed .309/.309/.503 with 2 RBI’s and a home run in 27 at-bats.
As a team that finished 13th in the MLB in runs scored and 14th in team average, St. Louis will undoubtedly welcome Ozuna’s power and consistency at the plate as they hope to get past the middle of the pack.
Baseball-reference.com predicts a slight regression for Ozuna this season, predicting a finish of 26 HR’s, 86 RBI’s and a .286 average.
This seems like a reasonably accurate guess, though it’s conceivable for him to eclipse the 30 home run mark once again.
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The St. Louis Cardinals are hoping that Marcell Ozuna continues his growth into a true five-tool player, while opponents will try to contain his growing ascension into superstardom.