After George Springer’s 6 year/$150 million deal, could Marcell Ozuna drive up his price? If so, how will this affect the Atlanta Braves’ approach?
It is no surprise that George Springer received such as massive contract. That was one of the many things to be expected from this offseason. Now that George Springer’s contract is confirmed, we can begin to speculate on where Marcell Ozuna‘s number will land and if the Atlanta Braves will meet it.
Basing this off of nothing more than assumptions, I could see Ozuna ending up with a 4 year deal worth anywhere between $80 and $85 million. His contributions in the recent 60 game season plays a huge part in this assumption as I believe a team will overpay him.
Sounds pretty steep, but I have a feeling that is where it is heading.
As much as I would love to have Marcell Ozuna back in an Atlanta Braves uniform for seasons to come, if Ozuna’s contract gets anywhere close to the above prediction, then I’d say change tactics.
What to do from here?
Considering Springer is now a Toronto Blue Jay and Michael Brantley is returning to the Houston Astros, the top options are beginning to dwindle for the Braves.
At this point, I believe it is a must to bring Adam Duvall back. It would not be the end of the world to have Duvall as the everyday LF considering he plays nice defense and has a decent bat. As stated many times before, a Duvall/(insert random left fielder here) platoon would be an even better idea.
Possibly inserting Joc Pederson or Eddie Rosario (my realistic choice) for that LF platoon pairing and we’ve got ourselves a deal, but I absolutely believe it is imperative for the Braves to bring back Duvall at the least.
This is not a thought that was based only on of his performance in 2020, but rather over the years, as Duvall has played an important role for the Braves on many occasions (especially in the 2019 NLDS against the Cardinals).
The Next Move(s)
If the Braves go with a platoon in LF of this caliber, it would not inflate the payroll for many years, which would allow for other moves to be made that I believe are absolutely necessary. Two of which would come from the bullpen.
Now there is obviously a need for one more arm in the bullpen. But if a platoon style LF is what the Braves go for, then why not go for two arms to strengthen the bullpen even more?
Why sign only Shane Greene or Mark Melancon when you could potentially sign both? I do not believe that it would be impossible to sign both Greene and Melancon if the Braves were to sign Ozuna as well, but it makes more sense, financially, that they would be much more capable of signing both Greene and Melancon without a large contract tied to Ozuna.
The Braves also have to consider Freddie Freeman’s contract extension when that time comes, which might be the most important task for the Braves to complete!
At the end of the day, the Braves have a tough decision to make in the coming weeks regarding Ozuna. But if Ozuna seeks a contract anywhere around my prediction, then it’d make more sense for the Braves to look elsewhere.
Do you believe Ozuna will get a contract that high or was I over-estimating it? Also, would you give that offer to Ozuna or look elsewhere?