When the Cardinals traded for Marcell Ozuna over the winter, expectations were far from modest. After swinging and missing on Giancarlo Stanton, Ozuna was brought in and was immediately coined the savior of the Cardinals' lineup. Thumper, mid-lineup fire stoker, and all-around resurgent 2018 hero to-be.
Hype and expectation can be a dangerous slope to travel on for sports fans, because the Ozuna reality is clear: he's more Ringo Starr than John Lennon in 2018. And that's okay if you look at his career statistics and salary.
The unruly expectations were being built on the back of a single dominant season from the former Miami Marlin, and not an entire career. Being starved of October playoff baseball forced many Cardinals fans to put the wagon in front of the horse with Ozuna, forcing any result to look ugly no matter the light.
Here's the thing. Ozuna isn't having a bad season. As the middle of September rolls around, Ozuna sits at 21 home runs, 76 RBI, and a slash line of .266/.323/.434. Ozuna's career OPS is .787, which isn't too far from his current OPS of .757. The 13 doubles are directing the outfielder towards a career low, but everything else checks out with the baseball card accountant.
Ozuna's weakest moments has placed him in the crosshairs of fans due to his lineup spot, which has rested in the clean-up position for the majority of the season. There were times where Ozuna's slugging percentage was lower than .400 and starting to fight tooth and nail with lesser power types like Kolten Wong and Yadier Molina. He simply wasn't producing like a power hitter from April through May, but then woke up in June.
July saw another dip, with a .564 OPS and five extra-base hits in 105 at-bats, but then he slugged .492 in August with just six extra-base hits. An up and down season hasn't included enough robust up moments for fans, so they are disappointed.
A lingering shoulder injury that started in spring training hasn't helped the cause. What started out as a defensive detriment in April started to effect Ozuna at the plate towards the middle of the season, with many rolled-over grounders heading into the infield. If a groundball had eyes, Ozuna owned it far too often. He was simply not getting enough of the sweet part of the bat on the ball.
And then he hit the disabled list in August, got a cortisone shot, and came back a different guy. Coming into Monday's game, Ozuna was 10-27 with five home runs. On Monday, Ozuna collected two more hits, lacing a double late in the game that contributed to the game-winning run being scored in a thrilling 8-7 victory.
Rested and hungry, Ozuna is producing like fans expected him to back in December. He smashed a pair of home runs in games against Washington and Detroit over the past week, mammoth shots that were missing for the better part of 2018. Ozuna isn't getting lucky or hitting majestic fly balls; he is hurting baseballs, showing some 2017 flair as the season ends.
It's hard to argue with a 2.6 WAR (Baseball Reference) with a salary of $9 million. Ozuna isn't Dexter Fowler, a veteran making $18 million and hitting like Tyler O'Neill and Dan Uggla's love child. Here is a guy who has experienced the highest of highs (5.8 WAR last season) and the lowest of lows (0.5 WAR in 2015). Did Stanton's presence help his 2017 launch? Yes. Is Ozuna useless without the Yankees designated hitter? No way.
If you base your perspective on salary and overall career performance, Ozuna's 2018 season is just fine. It's not great, poor, or memorable. He is producing more at the rate of a serviceable fifth place hitter than a cleanup guy, but that's due to the fact that the Cardinals lack a true destructive hitter outside of Matt Carpenter, who is the fixture at the top of the order.
If the issue was shoulder strength, Ozuna's September resurgence shouldn't be a fluke. He could make an honest run at 30 home runs and 100 RBI if his bat holds up. While that's doubtful, the fact that he has a shot points to how satisfying a season many would call a letdown can end up looking.
Ozuna's September could also provide a teaser for his 2019 campaign. Ozuna will enter the final year of his arbitration, no doubt a hungry hitter looking for that big contract. He will turn 28 years old in November, so the next contract could be his only shot at a real payday with the looming brick wall of 30 lurking and his unpredictable career keeping him out of the golden parachute contract levels. .
The only way Ozuna could have disappointed is if you hung your apples on the single branch of 2017 instead of being realistic about expectations built around his six-year career. The right perspective should result in more appreciation.
With 18 games to play and all of them needing to result in wins, Ozuna will play a big part in how this season ends, even if probable offseason surgery looms.
Ozuna may have been mislabeled a savior by many in spring training, but that doesn't mean he can't save 2018 at the very least. He can make people forget about a weak April with a strong September.
Armed with a healthy shoulder, Ozuna will get the final say on his season ends.
Thanks for reading,
DLB
