TAMPA — Even though Tyler O’Neill was dealt by the Cardinals, their senior decision-makers believe the new Red Sox outfielder, who is about to start his debut season in Boston, still has a lot of talent.
O’Neill had an up-and-down six and a half-year career in the St. Louis organization before being traded to the Red Sox in December for right-handers Nick Robertson and Victor Santos. O’Neill will have plenty of opportunities to make an impact on an inexperienced Red Sox outfield mix that also projects to include Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela, Masataka Yoshida, and Rob Refsnyder in 2024. Due to a shortage of outfielders, St. Louis went into the winter season hoping to move one. O’Neill was contacted by a few teams before the Cardinals sent him to Boston soon after the Winter Meetings concluded.
According to John Mozeliak, president of baseball operations for the Cardinals, the decision had less to do with the team’s confidence in O’Neill and more to do with St. Louis’ roster.
He’s quite talented, Mozeliak remarked on Thursday. “This is a man who, only a few years ago, was receiving votes for MVP on the upper ballot. He needs to perform as well as be able to maintain his health. But he is, in my opinion, a truly gifted man.
O’Neill has spent a significant portion of his career on the injured list. The Cards first acquired him in a 2017 transaction that sent lefty Marco Gonzales to Seattle. Only once, when winning a Gold Glove for St. Louis and hitting.286 with 34 home runs, 80 RBIs, and a.912 OPS, has he played in more than 100 games in a major league season. He was limited to 72 games last year, when his OPS dropped to.715, and 96 games in 2022 due to injuries.
As with the Cardinals, the Red Sox will have difficulty keeping the incredibly muscular O’Neill, who is an avid workout enthusiast, on the field.
“Have you already met him? When questioned about O’Neill’s history of injuries, Mozeliak remarked, “He’s well put together.” “That physique is a little different when compared to other baseball players.”
During O’Neill’s last season at St. Louis, he and his manager, Oli Marmol, got into a public argument. On April 5, O’Neill was benched by Marmol due to his alleged lack of hustle after he lost focus while sprinting around third base and was thrown out by Ronald Acuña Jr. during a Braves game in the seventh inning. Marmol disagreed, saying O’Neill might have wished to avoid taking a chance on getting hurt because it was pouring so much. O’Neill responded to the manager’s criticism of his effort, calling it “unacceptable,” stating he didn’t like Marmol questioning his morality and that he believed the matter “should have been handled a little differently.” During a recent interview on Foul Territory, O’Neill described his relationship with Marmol as something like “respect at an arm’s length” and said that things ended amicably.
Mozeliak and Marmol both played down the incident on Thursday.
He seems really mature to me. He’s a really responsible person, according to Marmol. “Goes about his work.” That aspect of it need never be questioned at all. I’ll tell you, that was talked about a lot more than what we did in our clubhouse.
Mozeliak agreed.
Many of those things kind of spiraled out of control. It was difficult to curb the pessimism, in my opinion, especially when you consider the season we were having and the fact that we were losing. He can start over here. We hope the best for him.
The Red Sox believe there is more talent in O’Neill. Though Adam Duvall (still a free agent) and Alex Verdugo (traded to the Yankees) aren’t on the team anymore, the 28-year-old has been the team’s only acquisition of the offseason thus far.
“There are a ton of benefits,” Marmol stated. “This kid has demonstrated an amazing defensive skill set and has had several months of consistently strong offensive play. His ability to combine that with his strong work ethic and general willpower might have some really positive effects.
Ultimately, it’s really more about finding a rhythm than anything else. Regretfully, he hasn’t been able to accomplish it because of certain injuries.
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