Hey look, it’s a Jurickson Profar post.

The last time that this guy was mentioned as the topic of discussion on this particular blog site was back when he was in the middle of his second PED-usage scandal in as many seasons. The second failed test caused Profar to miss the entirety of the 2026 season without pay, which meant that the Atlanta Braves were missing what could’ve been a useful DH bat for the entire 2026 season.

My assumptions that Profar would be back with the Braves in 2027 were put to the test when President/GM Alex Anthopoulos didn’t exactly confirm that the embattled hitter was a lock to return to the team going forward. As such, Profar has got something to prove for this upcoming season and he’ll be plying his trade for Los Tiburones de La Guaira in the Venezuelan Winter League this offseason. Lindsay Crosby was the first to report the news a few days ago. User Heydude2026 pointed it out over in The Feed so I’m sharing it over here, as well.

I found Jurickson!

He’s apparently going to play Winterball on the team Ronald does normally.

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He also made a good point about the fact that Profar has signed with the team that Ronald Acuña Jr. has played multiple seasons of Winter ball for in the past. If Acuña goes back home to play as well, then I’d imagine that this could definitely be part of a clubhouse “goodwill assignment” of sorts, since I’d also imagine that Profar has a long, long way to go in order to smooth things over with the teammates that he has left high-and-dry for exactly 243 games over two seasons now.

Profar also just has a lot to prove in general. He posted some fine numbers at the plate during his 2025 season where he hit .245/.353/.434 with a .346 wOBA, 14 home runs and 123 wRC+ in 80 games played but the PED usage still hangs a big cloud over that production. He also didn’t seem particularly thrilled about serving in the DH role as the Braves were heading into this season and I’d assume that he’ll either try to play some outfield in Venezuela to show that he’s capable of being reliable out there or he’ll strictly focus on hitting going forward so he can fit in the role.

Either way, this is just a step in Profar’s quest to hopefully smooth things over with the Braves on all levels going forward. He’s still under contract but Anthopoulos’ comments about him during his end-of-season press conference certainly implied that his spot on the team may be in jeopardy regardless. We’ll see what happens going forwad, y’all.