The Braves are going to pick up their club option on infielder Ozzie Albies. The club hasn’t announced the decision yet but president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos confirmed the move in a radio appearance, per Mark Zinno of 92.9 The Game. Atlanta will pay him a $7MM salary instead of the $4MM buyout. There’s also a $7MM club option for 2027 but with no buyout.
Even coming off a down season, there was never any scenario where Atlanta would turn down what’s a net $3MM option to keep Albies in the fold. The 28-year-old switch-hitter (29 in January) posted a career-worst .240/.306/.365 batting line (87 wRC+) in 157 games/667 plate appearances this past season, but he’s also not far removed from a 33-homer campaign and .280/.336/.513 output back in 2023. Plus, Albies finished the season looking far more like his typical self; over his final 264 turns at the plate, he produced a .272/.330/.439 line that sat about 11% better than league average.
Albies is now entering year six of what can max out as a seven-year contract. He inked a five-year, $35MM extension that has long stood as one of baseball’s great bargains. That deal contained a pair of $7MM club options, the first of which is now guaranteed bringing the total to six years and $38MM. (The $4MM buyout was included in the original $35MM guarantee.)
Even if Atlanta brass had soured on Albies’ long-term outlook — and, to be clear, there’s no indication that’s the case — picking up the option was a no-brainer. Albies’ bargain-rate salary and matching club option (with no buyout) would still hold appeal to teams seeking second base upgrades on the trade market.
As things stand, Albies can be reasonably expected to serve as the Braves’ everyday second baseman again in 2026. He’ll return to a lineup that’s set at most positions. Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy will split catching duties. Matt Olson is locked in at first base. Third baseman Austin Riley is signed through 2032. Ronald Acuña Jr. is heading into the final guaranteed season on his contract but, like Albies, has a pair of no-brainer club options (his covering 2027-28). Jurickson Profar is signed through 2027. Michael Harris II, who like Albies had a terrible three months followed by a strong second half, is signed through at least 2030.
Shortstop is the lone position where the Braves aren’t set at the moment. They’ll need to upgrade their bench and have plenty of work to do on the pitching staff — both in the rotation and the bullpen — but that only makes the affordable nature of Albies’ contract all the more appealing. Atlanta’s projected payroll checks in at a hefty $214MM, assuming the club options for Chris Sale, Tyler Kinley and Pierce Johnson are exercised.
The Braves have several non-tender candidates, and cutting anyone from that group will trim next year’s total outlay and their luxury-tax ledger by a few million dollars. But the Braves have only crossed the tax threshold once during the current core group’s time together (2023), so if the aim it to again stay under that line ($244MM in 2026), they’ll need to be judicious in how they address the remaining holes on the roster.
‘Run-it back’ season has commenced yet again in Atlanta!….Yes I know naysayers before you get your panties in a wad that $7mil is cheap for Albies and Weiss was the best option ever. It’s just a joke, breathe…
I prefer to get my knickers in a twist, but that’s just me.
It could be worse, Marlins fan
More weak throws to first.
Strong throws to first cost more than $7M
Let’s make a deal. Albies for Jazz. What team says No
Yankees. Stop it with the irrational Jazz-trading nonsense.
No, wait, Albies for Grissom!
Jazz’s team.
what happened to this guy? elite bat
then fell off a cliff
He’s 5’2
Elite? Explain.
Bunch of injuries.
Wrist injury. Bad speed fell off. Was moderately better towards the end of ‘25. But always was a free swinger that had good enough bat-to-ball skills to foul off, or even get cheap hits, on pitches out of the zone and then crush mistakes, especially right handed. But with the wrist injury, he had to cheat to catch up to fastballs, which means he couldn’t stay back on off speed. Maybe he gets that batspeed back another year removed from the injury…maybe not.
Was he 5’2” when he hit 33 homers or did he shrink?
lol he’s just a widdle guy
If the Braves make a play for Donovan, wonder if albies would be considered to maybe go to the cards. Wouldn’t mind seeing Atlanta pick up Donovan, noot and or Contreras, and maybe sonny gray. Braves probably wouldn’t mind having romero too. Maybe see albies and some prospects go the other way and the cards picking up some of grays money.
@Yankees. Jazz days are numbered after what took place in the playoffs. Yankees are not giving him a big contract. Why not trade him and get something. They refused to do that with Torres
They don’t do extensions. Jazz is a much better play than Gleyber. They need his production next year. 30-30 seasons and good defense for $10.5M (’26 projected salary) don’t grow on trees. Quit focusing on the negatives because he objectively helped the team win more games (4.2 WAR) than lose.
Let me see if I got this right:
Atlanta gets Donovan (Noot and or Contreras) and Sonny Gray, with the Cards paying down some salary.
Cards get Albies and some prospects that you haven’t heard of.
I’m guessing you are a Braves fan. Ain’t never going to happen.
The Braves have plenty of of good prospects (the Cardinals aren’t going to include more than 2 of those guys in a single trade), but I could certainly see Albies being included in a trade with someone like Ritchie or Caminiti. Caminiti might have the highest upside of all the Braves pitching prospects, but he’s far enough away from the majors that I doubt he’s untouchable
U R high
Good decision. There was never a reason to create another hole to fill when you already have a talented player there for what amounts to 3m dollars.
There’s the wife math I was waiting on! 7mil only actually costs 3mil when you really think about it? Basically it was for free and we may have actually made money technically, so yeah we made money and you’re welcome…..Haha 🙂
You pay the guy $4 million to walk or $7 million to stay. That’s a difference of $3 million. I know math is hard, but it’s not that complicated. Is he worth $3 million to keep him around another year and see if he bounces back to his previous production? In this market, I’d say it is.
He was already starting to look better toward the end of the season.
Last year at this time AA said we’re definitely exercising the option on d’Arnaud…
They had Baldwin who might (should) win ROY coming up last offseason along with Murphy. The only potential Braves 2nd base replacement currently on the roster is Nacho Alvarez who feels much more like a utility infielder than an everyday starter. It wouldn’t shock me if Albies is a name brought up in trade talks, but he’s a much more valuable trade asset when you pick up his option and he’s only being paid $7 million. Any team in baseball could afford that.
Albies had the wrist issue/injury that he played through during the first half of 2025. Once he was mostly healthy during the second half of 2025, he produced his usual numbers. Albies is a definite keeper for the Braves short and long term.