Marcell Ozuna

Marcell Ozuna Idelfonso (born November 12, 1990), nicknamed "the Big Bear", is a Dominican professional baseball outfielder for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB).

He has previously played in MLB for the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.

Ozuna was signed by the Marlins as an amateur free agent in 2008.

On February 15, 2008, the Florida Marlins signed Ozuna as an international free agent with a $49,000 bonus.

He played for the Dominican Summer League (DSL) Marlins that year, where in 63 games, he hit .279 with six home runs and 43 runs batted in (RBIs) and eight stolen bases.

In 2009, he played for the GCL Marlins, where in 55 games, he hit .313 with five home runs and 39 RBIs.

Ozuna began 2010 with the Greensboro Grasshoppers of the Class A South Atlantic League, but was sidelined after six appearances with an injured wrist.

He returned in June with Short Season Jamestown, where he finished the season.

In 74 total games, he hit .258 with 22 home runs and 62 RBIs.

Ozuna spent 2011 with Greensboro, where he hit .266 with 23 home runs, 71 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases over 131 games.

Ozuna was promoted to Jupiter Hammerheads of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League for the 2012 season, where in 129 games, he hit .266 with 24 home runs and 95 RBIs.

That year, he led the Florida State League in home runs, RBIs, runs scored, and total bases.

Ozuna was added to the Marlins' 40-man roster on November 20, 2012.

He made his MLB debut in 2013 with the Marlins.

Baseball America rated Ozuna the 75th-best prospect in baseball prior to the 2013 season.

Ozuna opened 2013 with Jupiter, but after four games, he was promoted to the Jacksonville Suns of the Class AA Southern League.

Ozuna was named the league's player of the week on April 29, 2013.

That same day, the Marlins promoted Ozuna to the major leagues following an injury to Giancarlo Stanton.

On April 30, 2013, Ozuna made his major league debut, and recorded his first career hit, a single off Jeremy Hefner of the New York Mets.

He hit his first career home run (as well as his first RBI and run scored), a solo home run, off Cole Hamels of the Philadelphia Phillies, in his fifth game.

Ozuna was used as the starting right fielder in Stanton's absence.

When Stanton returned, Ozuna became the starting center fielder.

On July 22, Ozuna was optioned back to Jacksonville.

Instead of joining Jacksonville, Ozuna was placed on the 15-day disabled list due to a ligament tear and avulsion fracture in his left thumb, which he injured while making a diving catch.

On July 26, 2013, he underwent season-ending thumb surgery.

In 2014, Ozuna played a total of 153 games for the Marlins, batting .269 with 23 home runs and 85 RBIs.

On September 11, 2014, he tied a franchise record with home runs in four consecutive games.

On July 5, 2015, Ozuna was sent down to AAA after going hitless in nine of ten games, dipping his average to .249 on the season.

After playing 33 games and batting .333 with five home runs and 11 RBIs, he returned to the Marlins to complete the 2015 season, batting .278 with six home runs and 18 RBI.

He is a two-time MLB All-Star (2016, 2017), and won both a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger Award in 2017, his breakout season.

That year, he finished fourth in the National League (NL) in batting average (.312), and third in home runs (37) and runs batted in (124).

During the off-season, the Marlins received several offers for him from other teams, but he was back on the roster for the 2016 season and inserted in the number-two spot in the lineup.

Following the 2017 season, the Marlins traded Ozuna to the St. Louis Cardinals.

In 2017, Ozuna was named NL Player of the Week for the week of April 10–16 after batting .435 with four home runs, 12 RBIs, and a 1.481 OPS.

Ozuna was named a starter for the NL in the 2017 MLB All-Star Game.

In 2020 he led the NL in both home runs and RBIs.

Marcell Ozuna Idelfonso was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

His father is a former painter, and his mother is a housekeeper.

He has one brother and two sisters.

He is the cousin of former MLB player Pablo Ozuna.