One of the big reasons the Atlanta Braves led the baseball world with 104 victories and 307 home runs was the performance of Marcell Ozuna.

Almost released three times since joining the Braves in 2020, Ozuna finished this season with 40 home runs, a career peak, and 100 runs batted. He reached both goals when he hit the ninth-inning home run on the last day that enabled the team to tie the 2019 Minnesota Twins for the most home runs in baseball history.

That home run also gave the Braves three 40-homer men – a rare feat first staged by Hank Aaron’s 1973 Braves – and four players with 100 runs batted in, along with league leader Matt Olson, MVP favorite Ronald Acuña, Jr., and switch-hitting second baseman Ozzie Albies.

That’s lofty territory for Ozuna, who ended the season with three homers in the last two games after starting it with an April batting average of .085.

The 32-year-old Dominican DH nearly lost his roster spot three times, first in 2021 after his arrest and suspension for alleged domestic violence involving his wife Genesis and then a year later after an arrest for driving under the influence.

The Braves also agonized about Ozuna early in the 2024 season when he stumbled out of the gate after a strong showing during spring training. He didn’t even appear in a May 1 double-header against the Mets at CitiField in Flushing.

Ozuna was mainly an outfielder when he signed a four-year, $64 million contract with the Braves on Aaron’s birthday, Feb. 5, in 2021. The pact contained a fifth-year $16 million option or a $1 million buyout, guaranteeing Ozuna $65 million.

During his first year, the virus-shortened 2020 campaign, Ozuna led the National League with 18 home runs, 56 runs batted in, and 145 total bases but missed a Triple Crown when his .338 batting average placed third. He started all 60 games, playing both outfield corners and serving as DH when the league tried the rule as a one-year experiment that season. He even finished sixth in the voting for National League MVP.

His strong debut season allowed Ozuna to become the first member of the Braves to lead the league in either home runs or RBI since 2005, when Andruw Jones had 51 homers and 128 RBI to finish first in both departments.

Ozuna now has 236 regular-season homers plus five in post-season play. A .269 lifetime hitter, he’s expected to bat fifth, behind Olson, when the Braves begin play in the National League Division Series Oct. 7.

The veteran designated hitter hit .297 with 38 home runs and a .969 OPS since May 2.

“We had a lot of success this year,” Ozuna said after the end of the regular season Sunday. “We wanted to break the [team] record, but God gave us only a tie. That’s an amazing season for each guy.”

Olson had 54 homers, followed by Acuña with 41, and Ozuna with 40. The first time the Braves had a trio of 40-homer hitters, their names were Davey Johnson (43), Darrell Evans (41), and Aaron (40).

“It feels amazing,” Ozuna told reporters after the game.“People didn’t believe in me like the way that I believe in myself, and God gave me the opportunity to be in this spot where I am right now.”

He figures to be a strong contender for Comeback of the Year honors and could even land in the Top 10 in the voting for Most Valuable Player.

“I’m just so happy for him,” said Atlanta manager Brian Snitker of the bearded DH. “It’s just amazing what that guy came through, and what he fought through, what he did, how he turned his season around. I’ve got so much respect for that guy. It’s phenomenal what he did.”

A true survivor, Ozuna ran into trouble a month into the 2021 season, when he broke two fingers while diving head-first into third base at Fenway Park, where Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers was waiting. Just days later, the domestic incident occurred.

Ozuna played only 48 games that season, most of them in the first two months, and hit only seven home runs. A year later, he hit 23 in 124 games. But there was no clue how well he’d do in 2024 – if indeed he got past the ugly start.

He wound up fifth in the league in both slugging (.669) and home runs, helping the Braves post a record .501 team slugging percentage.

Nicknamed “the Big Bear” because he’s a big guy (6-1, 225 lbs.) who loves to give bear hugs to teammates after big hits, Ozuna may not have finished writing the story of his remarkable in-season comeback. The Braves need 11 post-season victories to restore the world championship they won in 2021.