Ozuna reaches – Marcell Ozuna reached 300 career home runs in the Pirates’ 5-2 loss to the Giants, reflecting on the pressure he didn’t feel, the boos he faced at PNC Park, and how his May surge helped him win over the crowd.
When Marcell Ozuna launched Robbie Ray’s slider 365 feet to left for his fourth homer of the season. it came with a loud. clean milestone: No.. 300—his place among MLB’s elite—and a turning point that still has a sting.. The Pirates lost 5-2 to the San Francisco Giants on May 9, but Ozuna’s achievement cut through the noise.
The 35-year-old designated hitter became the 167th player in MLB history to reach 300 homers, and the 15th from the Dominican Republic to do it. It also marked a particular kind of arrival in Pittsburgh, a city that had greeted him early with boos after a rough start.
Through April, Ozuna batted .162 with a .467 OPS and recorded 29 strikeouts against seven walks.. Since May began. his numbers have shifted: he’s hit .244 with an .819 OPS. adding two homers and six RBIs while recording 11 strikeouts and eight walks.. The message from the batter’s box since that April slump has been simple—he’s been finding the ball more consistently.
The Pirates have leaned into the moment, making a video of all 300 of Ozuna’s career homers.. Ozuna said he watched it, noting that he couldn’t help but get caught up.. “I had a moment where I got all caught up and started hitting homers,” he said.. He also refreshed on the journey back. including memories of those tied to baseball who have passed away or left the sport.
Asked what it was like to get there, Ozuna didn’t treat the milestone like a finish line. “It’s big. It’s amazing, especially with the career I have. Being part of the 300 Homer Club is fantastic. I thank God for the opportunity to do that.”
He entered the season with 296 homers, but he said the closer he got to 300, the less he felt the weight.. “I don’t have that pressure,” Ozuna said.. “Last year, that was my pressure.. I thought I was going to finish with 25 or more.. God gave me the opportunity to do it now and to continue it.. Let’s get to 400!”
That drive is part of what the Pirates hope will keep carrying him.. Ozuna isn’t just another name in the record books—he’s one of 15 active players in the 300-homer club.. In Pittsburgh. his 300th also placed him among the select group of players who reached the mark while wearing the Pirates uniform.. He became the fifth in that category, joining Ralph Kiner, Willie Stargell, Jeromy Burnitz and Andrew McCutchen.
His path to the milestone was built over years in three major stops before Pittsburgh.. Ozuna hit 96 homers in five seasons with Miami, 52 in two seasons with St.. Louis, and 148 in six seasons with Atlanta.. In February, he signed a one-year deal worth $12 million as a free agent.. The boos came early at PNC Park, and Ozuna didn’t dodge that reality.
“Do you feel like you’ve won the fans over?” he was asked.
Ozuna didn’t argue with the crowd. “They were always on my side,” he said. “Sometimes they boo because they want to see you go off.” He added, “I deserved to be booed because I didn’t do good. When I start to do good, I know they’re going to be on my side. I don’t blame them.”
That shift—earned through performance, not promises—has mattered even more in a clubhouse where younger players look for guidance. Ozuna said he and Oneil Cruz connect in ways that go beyond stats. He described mentoring Cruz and taking pride in the way the shortstop is hitting.
“The way he’s hitting, he’s having a lot of success,” Ozuna said. “I feel proud of him. He’s got so much talent. He has to explore the talent that he has and be more confident at the plate.”
He framed it as a younger-player trap: trying to do too much. “Most of the time as a younger guy you try to do too much, try to work harder than ever,” he said. “You just need to relax and go get your pitch or go get what they give you.”
Ozuna’s own adjustment has been about timing and rhythm.. After April’s difficult stretch, he said he felt improvements building into May.. “I feel a lot better,” he said.. “I’m trying to get my rhythm and get in attack mode a little bit more.. I feel like it’s going to be fine.. Sometimes you struggle at the plate.. Right now, I feel a lot better.. I’m seeing more pitches.”
He also described the challenge of arriving in a new organization and how the day-to-day grind requires constant adaptation.. “It’s hard because the way you grind every single day for a new team and with new teammates. you have to adapt and adjust to the new team. ” he said.. He added that his teammates and coaches helped stabilize him during the transition.. “They always helped support me.. I feel blessed here.. I’ll never be mad at anyone in this room, especially the coaches,” Ozuna said.. “They gave me the confidence to keep grinding and put some balls in play.”
When he talked about how he pulled himself out of the slump, Ozuna pointed to belief and routine. During spring, he started well but then lost timing. “When the season started, it gets into your mind,” he said. His message since then has been repetitive on purpose: “Never give up. Never give up.”
As the Pirates continue to look for momentum, Ozuna also shared what he enjoys about playing at PNC Park.. He called the ballpark “one of the most beautiful,” and said he likes coming there.. He remembered how many top names he’s faced at this venue—A.J.. Burnett, Charlie Morton, Gerrit Cole and Gerrit Taillon among others—and noted his own history too.. He said he faced Steven Brault with the Marlins and mentioned he liked both the atmosphere and the uniforms.
His milestone home run added to the list. but Ozuna’s favorite blasts point to a wider theme: big moments can belong to the unexpected.. He said his favorite came against Tampa Bay when Blake Snell threw a changeup and Ozuna hit a 468-foot homer off the 2011 (AL) Wild Card banner in left field at Tropicana Field in 2017.
He also recalled hitting a shot to the foul pole—a feat he said he has done once against Jerome Williams in 2015. a 434-foot. two-run shot to left field on Aug.. 20 against the Philadelphia Phillies.. “I told Oneil that I already did what you did.. I did that 10 years ago,” Ozuna said.. “To hit the pole is a lucky thing.. Never try it.”
Right now. the Pirates have a new piece of history in their lineup—one that comes with a reminder of what it costs to get there. and what it takes to earn trust again after a rocky start.. Ozuna got his 300th. and while the Pirates fell short on May 9. he left the conversation focused on the next target.
“Let’s get to 400!” he said—less like a celebration, more like a promise to keep moving forward as the season continues at PNC Park.
Marcell Ozuna Pirates 300th homer PNC Park Oneil Cruz MLB home run milestone Robbie Ray San Francisco Giants May 9 2026