St. Louis Cardinals Hot Stove: 4 Under-the-Radar FA, Trade Targets

Marcell Ozuna, CF

Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Marlins have given up on their one-time center fielder of the future, according to multiple reports. Like fellow future franchise player Christian Yelich, Marcel Ozuna had a terrible first half in Miami last year. But instead of sticking with him, as it did with Yelich, the organization demoted Ozuna to triple-A and left him there for a while in July.

By the way, Ozuna wasn’t that terrible. He hit .249 in the first half. The problem was his meager .638 OPS. Regardless, here we are with a poisoned relationship that doesn’t look as if it will get any better. Momentum toward a trade is already well under way. Classic Marlins.

For the St. Louis Cardinals, Marcell Ozuna could be the 2016 version of last year’s offseason acquisition Jason Heyward, albeit for a cheaper price. Like Heyward, Ozuna failed to meet the lofty expectations of the organization that developed him. And like Heyward, Ozuna will soon be dealt at 25 years old, has a cannon for an arm and has already shown he can hit for power against lefthanded and righthanded pitching. Remember, Ozuna slugged 23 dingers and was a 2.6-WAR player in 2014.

Does one bad year a career make? I think not.

Next: Asdrubal Cabrera, INF