Braves slugger Marcell Ozuna has reportedly been battling a hip injury

Every club deals with injuries, but for the Braves, it seems like they happen in the worst possible fashion, and Atlanta’s slugging designated hitter, Marcell Ozuna, could be the next in line.

Most recently, it was A.J. Smith-Shawver, who tore his UCL amid the best stretch of baseball in his career. Before him, it was Spencer Strider pulling his hamstring after returning from his own UCL injury.

In the offseason, Joe Jimenez went under the knife. In the early goings of the season, Reynaldo Lopez was shut down due to a shoulder injury. For the Braves, it seems that when it rains, it pours.

Surprisingly, despite all of Atlanta’s injuries impacting the pitching staff, it’s the offense that has been the weakest facet of the club to this point. Losing any of its contributors right now could prove devastating to the Braves’ playoff hopes.

Marcell Ozuna has been the team’s best hitter for two years now, and it’s not just because of his power, which is evident in his .474 slugging percentage. It’s his eye at the plate that makes the difference, drawing an MLB-leading 48 walks. If it weren’t for the Big Bear, I can’t even imagine what the Braves’ offense would look like.

Unfortunately, we may get a glimpse of that possibility. According to David O’Brien of The Athletic, Ozuna has been hampered for weeks by a hip injury.

“I’ve been kind of slow because I don’t want to rotate, because my hip is kind of shut down a little bit,” Ozuna said via O’Brien. “I had a tear (in the) right hip, so I just … keep battling. I’m trying to help my team. That’s the most important thing. I want to be in the lineup every single day, and do everything for my team.”

This seems like a way bigger deal than O’Brien or any of the other Braves beat writers are making it out to be. If Ozuna can be shut down and allowed to heal up for the stretch run, that should be the plan because Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy can split DH duties while the other catches with Ozuna absent.

However, if it’s an either-or situation, as in Ozuna pushes through or undergoes surgery and misses the rest of the season, I can understand the Braves’ stance of letting him try to push through. Regardless, the fact that this is just now coming out is astonishing.