San Diego could use some DH help.
The Atlanta Braves and San Diego Padres are in discussions to send designated hitter Marcell Ozuna west in exchange for two pitchers, according to a report from Hector Gomez.
SOURCE: Trade talks between #Padres and #Braves have intensified. The #Padres are very interested in landing Marcell Ozuna. According to the source, the #Braves would receive Padres’ No. 18 prospect RHP Francis Peña and No. 21 prospect RHP Ryan Bergert.@z101digital
— Héctor Gómez (@hgomez27) July 23, 2025
Ozuna, a free agent at season’s end, has struggled mightily since it was revealed in early June that he was playing through a tear in his hip. The veteran slugger has effectively been benched over the last two weeks as the Braves favor playing catchers Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin at catcher and DH. With the 2025 season looking like a bust, it makes all the sense in the world to unload Ozuna for something and clear the deck a bit.
We’ll see if anything comes of the report, but Francis Pena is a 24-year-old relief prospect who pitched well in 2024 but has struggled with command a bit in 2025. He throws a fastball in the mid-upper 90s that can touch 100 and a slider that’s really more of a cutter given its movement.
As for Ryan Bergert, there’s some intrigue there as he’s likely ready for the Majors now and found himself ranked No. 3 on FanGraphs’ recent Padres farm system write up. The Braves desperately need someone to make starts down the stretch given the injuries to the rotation, and Bergert has made improvements over the last year to give him some back-end rotation potential in the majors. Funny enough, a recent article from FanSided connected the Braves and Padres in an Ozuna-for-Bergert swap given the two club’s needs.
Stay tuned…