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5 hours ago
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For most of Ozzie Albies' MLB career, he was listed at 5-foot-8.
Now, he's shorter. The Atlanta Braves' second baseman is officially 5-foot-7.
He's not alone, though. Many hitters across the league have had altered heights in the last 12 months. As MLB implements the ABS challenge system, official heights are more important than ever.
The league is determining the top and bottom of the challengeable strike zone based on a percentage of a given player's official height. So you certainly wouldn't want to be listed as taller than you actually are.
Albies was already one of baseball's shortest players, and it's not like he's actually shrinking (we don't think).
It's just a matter of semantics.
"We’re going to see a lot of height changes this year because, with the rollout of ABS, MLB is now measuring each player's height down to the millimeter," Joe Pompliano wrote on X. "The process is super strict — no shoes, no hats, knees exposed, back against the wall — and to account for potential shrinkage throughout the day, MLB is even requiring all its teams to take measurements between 10 am and 12 pm local time on their appointed day."
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The most important part of the season ahead for Albies isn't his height. It's his production.
He, like many of the Braves, had a brutal 2025 season. They were supposed to contend for the NL East title, and then they finished fourth in the division, behind even the Miami Marlins.
Albies was even discussed as a potential trade candidate, although that didn't happen.
Even this offseason, Albies could've been dealt, but wasn't.
Now, the Braves are hoping he can lift his game to previous heights, beyond the poor performance he had in 2025.
If Albies bounces back, it'll help the Braves bounce back, too.
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