It’s been a quiet offseason for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Outside of Alex Bregman and Ketel Marte rumors, the Diamondbacks have done little to improve a roster that missed the playoffs in 2025.
General Manager Mike Hazen has made no major additions to the pitching situation outside of bringing back Merrill Kelly, and no major additions have been made on the offensive side.
The bullpen, especially, has been a source of frustration for Diamondbacks fans after blowing 29 saves in 2025, the most in the league.
Despite the major need for pitching, the offense could still use some pop, particularly at designated hitter.
As of now, there is no clear-cut option at DH in Arizona for the 2026 season. Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter predicted the lineup for every ballclub in 2026. The Diamondbacks have a surprising addition to their team in this exercise.
Who Does Reuter Have the Arizona Diamondbacks Signing?
According to Reuter, the Diamondbacks will sign designated hitter Marcell Ozuna. Entering his age-35 season, it’s fair to wonder how much Ozuna has left in the tank.
With 296 career home runs, an .806 OPS, three All-Star appearances and 29.5 bWAR, Ozuna has put together a solid career over 13 years. Could Arizona be one of his last stops?
“A proven run producer to slot into the cleanup spot in the lineup would boost the entire offense, and the list of logical landing spots for Marcell Ozuna at this point in the offseason is not a long one,” Reuter wrote.
In 2025, Ozuna put together a slightly above-average season. In 145 games, he batted .232 with 21 home runs and a .756 OPS (113 OPS+). However, this was a major downgrade from his prolific 2024 season.
During that season, Ozuna played all 162 games, batting .302 with 39 home runs and a .925 OPS. If a guy named Shohei Ohtani didn’t exist, he would’ve been the best DH on the planet that season. Instead, Ozuna finished fourth in MVP voting that year behind Ohtani, Francisco Lindor and Marte.
Can Ozuna replicate that 2024 season in 2026? It’s unlikely, but there is reason to believe he can continue his successful career with a strong 2026.
What Can Ozuna Bring to Arizona?
Ozuna won’t see any time in the outfield in 2026. Those days are long behind him. However, he still brings plenty of offensive value to a team to make up for his lack of versatility.
While his xwOBA was not nearly as strong in 2025 as it was in 2024, Ozuna was still in the 83rd percentile in that category, per Baseball Savant. He can still barrel the ball, as evidenced by above-average marks in Barrel, Hard-Hit and LA Sweet-Spot percentage.
But another statistic about his profile that stands out is his plate discipline. His chase percentage (85th percentile) and his walk rate (98th percentile) are both still elite at this stage of his career.
This is especially outstanding considering that he is a power hitter. In today’s age, plate discipline is lacking in power hitters, but not necessarily in Ozuna.
With the Diamondbacks desperately needing a power-hitting right-handed bat in the lineup, Ozuna could be a great addition to Arizona’s roster, which has struggled since their NL pennant-winning season in 2023.
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