JUPITER, Fla. • Mike Shildt monotonously answered a monotonous question about a minor league catcher when, all of a sudden, he heard the call from afar: “Shildt! Shildt! Shildt! Shildt! Shildt!”
There in the distance, outside the team’s spring training clubhouse, was Marcell Ozuna, the slugger who wears his heart on his neon-green sleeve.
Marcell Ozuna is loud. Loud voice, loud bat, loud personality, loud wardrobe. And no Cardinal evokes more emotions and opinions — and they’re often conflicting. Is he lovable … or over the top? Will he be the offensive X-factor for a successful 2019 … or is he a one-year wonder who arrived in 2018 with a bum shoulder?