On Saturday, Braves slugger Marcell Ozuna was arrested on charges of aggravated assault, strangulation, and battery-family violence after an apparent altercation with his wife.
According to the Sandy Springs, GA Police Department, officers received a 911 call shortly after noon regarding a potential assault.
Officers arrived on the scene and noticed the front door was wide open, while also hearing screaming. They then entered the home.
“Due to the exigency of the known facts, Officers entered the residence through the front door and witnessed the suspect grabbing the victim by the neck and throwing her against the wall,” the report from the Sandy Springs Police Department read. “Officers were able to immediately take the suspect into custody without further incident. In addition to the strangulation attempts, the suspect also struck the victim with his arm which had a cast from a previous injury. Preliminary investigation has revealed this incident to be domestic related between the suspect and his wife, both residents of the Windsor Cove home.”
Ozuna is currently on the IL after injuring his fingers on an attempted slide into third-base at Fenway Park during the Braves game against the Red Sox on Tuesday. It was estimated that the injury would keep him out for roughly six weeks, though that period will likely be extended in light of Saturday’s events, as a follow-up report revealed that Ozuna threatened to kill his wife during the altercation.
The Braves also released a statement Saturday night.
“We learned of Marcell Ozuna ’s arrest earlier this evening and immediately informed the Commissioner’s Office,” the statement read. “The Braves fully support Major League Baseball’s policy on domestic violence, which stresses to the fullest that our society cannot and will not tolerate domestic violence in any form. Until the investigation is completed, we will have no further comment and all inquiries into the matters should be referred to the Office of the Commissioner.”
Ozuna is off to a bit of a slow start this year, hitting just .213, but he does have 7 home-runs and 26 RBI’s. The Braves re-signed him to a four-year $65MM deal this past offseason, with a club option for 2025. Last year, in the shortened 60 game season, Ozuna hit 18 home-runs with a .338 batting average and 56 RBI’s, throwing himself into the MVP conversation in his first year with Atlanta, along with teammate Freddie Freeman.
This almost certainly means the end of the 2021 season for the Braves outfielder. The team will most likely put him on the restricted list, which would allow them to halt all payments due to him. It remains to be seen what this could mean for his career. Pirates reliever Felipe Vazquez is currently on the restricted list after being arrested for sexual assault in 2019.
It’s worth noting that Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman was arrested in 2015 for domestic violence, yet is still pitching today. But that was also before the league stiffened its penalties for such an offense, so if Major League Baseball sticks to their plan for domestic violence penalties, it could mean the end of Ozuna’s career.
If this is the end for Marcell Ozuna, he will have finished with a career .273 batting average, 173 homers and 620 RBI’s, while having an OPS of .794.
For more MLB coverage, click here.
