Since he joined the Atlanta Braves organization back in 2013 back when he was still called Ozhaino, Ozzie Albies has been overlooked. At just 5'8, many thought he was too small to be an impact bat, didn't have the length to cover enough ground in the infield, or the throwing accuracy to make it in the big leagues. While he was a highly ranked prospect, it was more as a speedy infield prospect with a high end hit tool than as a potential star.
We have all seen what happened next. Albies went on to make three All-Star teams and average a .272/.322/.480 line and 21 homers a year between 2018 and 2023. If he hadn't had some rotten injury luck, those numbers would be even stronger. Even establishing himself as one of the best second basemen in the league, national outlets continued to disrespect him by not even putting Albies on their Top 10 players at second base for this season.
Being perennially overlooked and under-appreciated by the media and fans at large does not appear to be bothering Ozzie in the slightest, however, as he is in the middle of a torrid stretch to start the season.
Ozzie Albies' hot start bodes well for himself and the Braves going forward
Through 10 games in 2024, Albies is currently slashing .310/.370/.548 with six extra-base hits and while it isn't likely that he will be able to keep up quite that level of production, he has always had the talent to be this kind of guy. Many thought he would compete for a batting title before he was promoted to the big leagues and he has certainly had stretches where he has singlehandedly carried the Braves' offense. No too shabby for a guy that MLB Network couldn't be bothered to rank among the league's best second basemen.
In fairness to the national observers, part of the problem with getting Albies more national recognition has been injuries. In 2022, Albies broke his foot and his pinky finger (the latter immediately after he returned from the former) which resulted in him playing in just 64 games. Last year, he had offseason shoulder surgery that got him off to slow start to the year and then missed some time with a hamstring injury later in the season.
Ultimately, where Albies places in power rankings doesn't matter all that much as those lists are made by flawed media personalities with agendas. Albies is just going to keep raking regardless. However, he is only under contract through 2026 and is going to be in line for a big raise pretty soon at this rate whether national baseball writers choose to acknowledge it or not.