Tyler O’Neill remains in the American League East.
The former Boston Red Sox outfielder agreed to a three-year, $49.5 million contract Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The deal reportedly includes an opt-out after the first season.
The deal rewards a resurgent season for former leader St. Louis Cardinals, who had a career year in 2021, but struggled to repeat that form until last year. In 2021, O’Neill finished eighth in MVP voting and won a Gold Glove, hitting .286/.352/.560 with 34 home runs. He hit just .229/.310/.397 over the next two seasons, leading to a trade to Boston.
O’Neill didn’t quite reproduce his 2021 numbers, but he made a good enough impression to earn a multi-year deal in free agency. His style of play is still high risk, high reward at the plate. His peripherals are some of the worst of any MLB regular when it comes to strikeouts and whiffs, but whenever he touches the ball and can draw a walk, he makes hard contact.
All of which makes O’Neill a natural replacement for Anthony Santander, a similar-profile Silver Slugger-winning hitter in right field for the Orioles. Santander remains a free agent and will almost certainly not return.
Baltimore still has more on its to-do list after a somewhat disappointing 91-win season. Its 2024 ace, Corbin Burnes, remains a free agent and the team is looking to either re-sign or replace him at the top of the rotation. Neither option will be cheap, but it won’t be as expensive as what the Red Sox are trying to do at corner with O’Neill on his way out.