Pirates’ Marcell Ozuna signing seemingly ends Andrew McCutchen era

After more than a decade with the team between two stints, Andrew McCutchen may be parting ways with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

McCutchen, who will turn 40 years old in October, has spent most of his MLB career in Pittsburgh. But following the Pirates’ signing of Marcell Ozuna, McCutchen could be on his way out, considering he, according to 93.7 The Fan’s Josh Rowntree, “removed the photo of him wearing a Pirates jersey from his social media profiles.”

The Pirates drafted McCutchen with the 11th overall pick in 2005, four years before he made his MLB debut with Pittsburgh. He spent nine seasons there, earning an NL MVP, Gold Glove, five All-Star honors, and four Silver Slugger awards, in addition to becoming a fan favorite. After five years spent with four teams, McCutchen returned in 2023 to the Pirates, with whom he has been since.

McCutchen put together one of the least effective seasons of his career last year; at age 38, he batted .239 and recorded 13 home runs and 57 RBI.

Ozuna is coming to Pittsburgh after six seasons with the Atlanta Braves. He was most recently an All-Star in 2024, but his numbers took a nosedive this past season, when he batted .232 and had 21 home runs and 68 RBI.

Possibly more importantly, though, Ozuna has been involved in multiple domestic violence incidents and, in 2022, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence. He had previously been arrested and charged with aggravated assault in 2021, which resulted in a 20-game MLB suspension.

The Pirates have not been to the postseason since 2015, making for one of the longest playoff droughts in MLB. But the team is only trending in the wrong direction, as their win total decreased by five games — from 76 to 71 — this past season despite having Paul Skenes, the NL’s Cy Young winner. Pittsburgh has also not recorded a winning season since 2018, when it went 82-79.

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