For most of the 2025 season, the Atlanta Braves longest-tenured player struggled to hit. For years, it was a given that the two team friendly club options on Ozzie Albies would be exercised as his deal was considered one of the most team-friendly deals in baseball. However, as the switch-hitting second baseman continued to struggle, the decision began to look more and more questionable.
One of the biggest issues with Albies' bat was his success against left-handed pitching or lack thereof. In the first half of this season, Albies slashed just .220/.246/.266 (.502 OPS) while hitting righty, well below the .926 OPS he carried from 2017-2024.
However, since the All-Star break, right-handed hitting Ozzie has looked like the Ozzie of old.
Ozzie, we love him!@ozzie | #BravesCountry pic.twitter.com/zprZ88DR8M
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 27, 2025
The lefty-mashing Ozzie Albies has returned and Braves fans should be thrilled
Albies had always been a much better hitter from the right side than from the left. Coming into the season, Albies had a .743 career OPS hitting left-handed, compared to the .926 OPS he had as a righty. To say that the difference was stark is underselling it quite a bit.
In 2024, where Albies had a .251/.303/.404 slash and a 96 wRC+, he was still a very good right-handed hitter. He had a 137 wRC+ as a righty against lefties, and a 98 wRC+ in a small sample as a righty against righties.
What brought down Albies' overall numbers last season were his struggles as a lefty. When hitting left-handed, Albies slashed .225/.294/.351 with an 80 wRC+ in 2024. Entering the season, it would be more understandable if Ozzie's struggles as a lefty worsened, especially considering he couldn't even hit from that side of the plate at the end of the season.
But through the All-Star break, that wasn't the case. In the first half, Albies had a .220/.308/.337 slashline hitting left handed, which came out to an 83 wRC+, three points better than his 2024. If the three-time All-Star continued to mash lefties like fans were accustomed to, the 28-year-old's struggles would likely go unnoticed (or at least, minimally noticed).
Unfortunately, Albies performance from the right side of the plate was disastrous, finishing the first half with a 40 wRC+ hitting right-handed which was dramatically lower than we had become accustomed.
Thankfully, Albies has seemingly flipped the switch. From the left side, Albies has seen marginal improvement compared to the first half of 2025, slashing .232/.312/.392 with a 94 wRC+. From the right side, however, Albies has taken off. In 46 plate appearances, he's slashed .409/.435/.636, good for a 195 wRC+. That is more like it.
There has been speculation that Albies' previous wrist injury lingered into this year. It would make sense that his struggles against left handed pitching was a side effect of that injury, especially since he's gone back to mashing from the right side of the plate. It does take a good bit of time sometimes for players to rebuild strength and mobility in their wrist after fractures like he suffered.
If Albies has truly regained his lefty-killer form, then picking up his team option will be a no-brainer.