Everything continues to go south for the 2025 Atlanta Braves.
The Braves were on the verge of a series win coming out of the All-Star break, but blew a five-run lead against the New York Yankees on Saturday night, then lost the series on Sunday. They're now 43-55, an unfathomable 10 1/2 games out of Wild Card position.
Worse still: the Braves don't have much to sell at the trade deadline next week. If they can get anything for designated hitter Marcell Ozuna, who has suddenly found himself in a bench role, they have to take it.
On Monday, ESPN's Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan seemed to indicate there was a strong chance an Ozuna trade would happen.
In their trade deadline preview, McDaniel and Passan named five potential suitors for Ozuna, while assigning the three-time All-Star a 70 percent chance of being traded by Jul. 31 at 6 p.m. EST.
"Ozuna is a stone-cold DH, playing two games in the field in 2023 as his last regular-season experience defensively. Ozuna is also in a contract year, but his power numbers are down a notch from his standout .302 average and 39-homer performance last season," wrote Passan and McDaniel.
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"His on-base percentage remains among the highest of potential trade candidates. If anyone is moving from Atlanta, he's the likeliest candidate, with free agency beckoning. Best fits: San Diego (Padres), Seattle (Mariners), Texas (Rangers), Detroit (Tigers), San Francisco (Giants).
Ozuna now owns a .235/.361/.390 slash line on the year, and the Braves are committing to a Drake Baldwin-Sean Murphy timeshare between catcher and DH. Ozuna has also had a hip injury for most of the season, which seems to correspond with his downtick in production.
Still, many of the teams above are so desperate for offense that the Braves should be able to at least grab a half-decent prospect for their longtime slugger.
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