Tyler Alan O'Neill (born June 22, 1995) is a Canadian

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

left fielder In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering sys ...

for the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

(MLB). He made his MLB debut on April 19, 2018. He has represented

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

in international play, winning a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...

at the

2015 Pan American games Fifteen or 15 may refer to: *15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16 *one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015 Music * Fifteen (band), a punk rock band Albums * ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005 * ''15'' (Ani Lorak al ...

. O'Neill stands tall, weighs , and throws and bats right-handed. From the

Greater Vancouver Greater Vancouver, also known as Metro Vancouver, is the metropolitan area with its major urban centre being the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The term "Greater Vancouver" is roughly coterminous with the geographic area governed b ...

area of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

, the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion ...

selected O'Neill in the third round of the

2013 MLB draft The 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft was held from June 6 through June 8, 2013. The first two rounds were broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. Each team received one selection per round, going in ...

. In 2016, he was the

Southern League Most Valuable Player The Southern League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual award given to the best player in Minor League Baseball's Southern League based on their regular-season performance as voted on by league managers. League broadcasters, Minor Lea ...

(MVP) along with winning the Southern League championship with the

Jackson Generals The Jackson Generals were a professional baseball team located in Jackson, Tennessee. From 1998 to 2020, they were a part of Minor League Baseball's Southern League (SL) as the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs (1998–2006), Seattle Mari ...

. On July 21, 2017, the Mariners traded him to the Cardinals. Later that year, he won the

Pacific Coast League championship The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the United States at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Baseball. A champion has been determined at the end of each season since the league ...

as a member of the

Memphis Redbirds The Memphis Redbirds are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. They are located in Memphis, Tennessee, and are named for their Major League Baseball affiliate. The Red ...

. After making his MLB debut in 2018 with the Cardinals, O'Neill struggled with injuries and split time between St. Louis and the minor leagues for two seasons before he became their starting left fielder in 2020, winning his first ever

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in bo ...

Early life and amateur career

O'Neill attended

Garibaldi Secondary School Garibaldi Secondary School is a grade 8-12 school located in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada. The school presently has about 1,040 students, and 62 teachers.Maple Ridge, British Columbia Maple Ridge is a city in British Columbia, Canada. It is located in the northeastern section of Greater Vancouver between the Fraser River and the Golden Ears, which is a group of mountain summits which are the southernmost of the Garibald ...

and played for the

Langley Blaze The Langley Blaze are a youth baseball team located in the city of Langley, British Columbia. The Langley Blaze was founded in 2001 by Doug Mathieson, a former right-handed pitcher who played in the MLB Minor Leagues for seven years. The Blaze's ...

of the

British Columbia Premier Baseball League The British Columbia Premier Baseball League, commonly referred to as the BCPBL or the PBL, is a competitive youth baseball league consisting of 13 teams located throughout British Columbia, Canada. Over the years, the BCPBL has served as a tal ...

. He grew up a fan of the

. He committed to play

college baseball College baseball is baseball that is played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education. In comparison to football and basketball, college competition in the United States plays a smaller role in developing professional pl ...

Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering ...

for the

Oregon State Beavers The Oregon State Beavers are the athletic teams that represent Oregon State University, located in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I ( Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for ...

Professional career

Seattle Mariners

The

selected O'Neill in the third round of the

. He signed with the Mariners and made his professional debut with the

Arizona League Mariners The Arizona Complex League Mariners are a Rookie-level affiliate of the Seattle Mariners, competing in the Arizona Complex League of Minor League Baseball. The team plays its home games at Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Arizona. The team is ...

. In 2014, O'Neill played in only 51 games between the Arizona League Mariners,

Everett AquaSox The Everett AquaSox are a Minor League Baseball team in Everett, Washington. The team is a member of the Northwest League and is affiliated with the Seattle Mariners. The AquaSox play their home games at Funko Field, which has a seating capacity ...

and

Clinton LumberKings The Clinton LumberKings are a collegiate summer baseball team of the Prospect League. They are located in Clinton, Iowa, and play their home games at NelsonCorp Field. From 1956 to 2020, they were members of Minor League Baseball's Midwest Leag ...

due to a broken bone in his right hand he suffered after punching a concrete wall in the dugout. He spent 2015 with the

Bakersfield Blaze The Bakersfield Blaze were a minor league baseball team in Bakersfield, California. They played in the Class A – Advanced California League. They played their home games at Sam Lynn Ballpark. Opened in 1941, the stadium is well known for facin ...

, where he posted a .260 batting average to go along with 32 home runs and 87 RBIs. O'Neill played for the Canada national team at the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

and the

2015 WBSC Premier12 The 2015 WBSC Premier12 was an international baseball championship sponsored by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), the inaugural event of the WBSC Premier12. It was held from November 8 to 21 in Taiwan and Japan. The South Korean ...

. In the 2015 Pan Am Games final, Canada defeated the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

7–6 in extra innings to claim the

. He spent 2016 with the

of the Southern League, where he batted .293 with 24 home runs and 102 RBIs. Jackson won the Southern League

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

after a league best 84–55 record, and O'Neill was the

(MVP). In seven playoff contests, he batted .448, three home runs and eight RBIs. He began 2017 with the

Tacoma Rainers The Tacoma Rainiers are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Tacoma, Washington, and play their home games at Cheney Stadium, which opened in 1960. ...

of the

Class AAA Triple-A (officially Class AAA) has been the highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946. Currently, two leagues operate at the Triple-A level, the International League (IL) and the Pacific Coast League (PCL). ...

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Ba ...

(PCL).

St. Louis Cardinals

2017

On July 21, 2017, the

acquired O'Neill for pitcher Marco Gonzales and assigned him to the

of the PCL. O'Neill finished 2017 with a combined .246 batting average, 31 home runs, and 95 RBIs in 130 games between Tacoma and Memphis. The Redbirds became the 2017 PCL champions after defeating the

El Paso Chihuahuas The El Paso Chihuahuas are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. They are located in El Paso, Texas, and play their home games at Southwest University Park, which opened ...

in five games in the league championship final, giving O'Neill consecutive minor league championships with two different organizations at two different levels. The Cardinals added him to their

40-man roster A Major League Baseball roster is a list of players who are allowed, by league agreement, to play for a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Each MLB team maintains two rosters: an active roster of players eligible to participate in an MLB game, an ...

after the season to protect him from being chosen in the Rule 5 Draft.

2018

MLB.com ranked O'Neill as St Louis' fourth best prospect going into the

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

season. He competed in

spring training Spring training is the preseason in Major League Baseball (MLB), a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the regular season. Spring training allows new players to try out for roster and position spots, and gives estab ...

for an opportunity to make the major league roster as a reserve, but hamstring and oblique injuries kept him out of play. He began the season with Memphis and was promoted to MLB on April 19, 2018. He had been leading the PCL with six home runs and 18 RBI. He made his MLB debut the next night at

Wrigley Field Wrigley Field is a Major League Baseball (MLB) stadium on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the city's two MLB franchises. It first opened in 1914 as Weeghman Park for Charles Weeghman's Chicago ...

against the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is locate ...

, making him the sixth Canadian-born player to appear on an active MLB roster on the season. He was sent back down on April 28 after seven hitless at bats and recalled again on May 18. He mustered his first MLB hit, a single off Yacksel Ríos of the

Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...

that same night in a 12–4 St. Louis win. O'Neill hit his first MLB home run the next day off Luis García. On May 21, he amassed his first four-RBI game, and homered in his third consecutive game the following day. He was optioned back to Memphis on May 31 and was recalled by St. Louis for the second time on July 2 to take the spot of

Dexter Fowler William Dexter Fowler (born March 22, 1986) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Houston Astros, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinal ...

, who had gone on paternity leave. He was placed on the 10-day

disabled list In Major League Baseball (MLB), the injured list (IL) is a method for teams to remove their injured players from the roster in order to summon healthy players. Before the 2019 season, it was known as the disabled list (DL). General guidelines ...

on July 5 with a hamstring strain, was activated on June 17, and was optioned back to Memphis. He was recalled once again on July 31 following the trade of Tommy Pham, and spent the remainder of the season in St. Louis. He hit his first

walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning of the game and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will no ...

on September 22, a 414-foot shot, against the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yo ...

, leading St. Louis to a 5-4 victory. In 61 games for the Cardinals, O'Neill batted .254 with nine home runs and 23 RBIs.

2019

In 2019, O'Neill made St. Louis' Opening Day roster, but his season was interrupted by injuries alongside being reassigned to Memphis for over a month. He was recalled to St. Louis in June, and finished the year with them. Over sixty games, he hit .262 with five home runs and 16 RBIs.

2020

O'Neill made St. Louis' Opening Day roster in 2020, and spent the whole season there starting in the outfield, slashing .173/.261/.621 with seven home runs and 19 RBIs over 139

at-bats In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

. After the season, he was awarded his first ever

for left field after leading major league left fielders with nine defensive runs saved and four outs above average alongside not committing an error over 344 innings.

2021

O'Neill returned as St. Louis' starting left fielder in 2021. On September 20, O'Neill was named the National League Player of the Week after leading the Cardinals to a 6-0 week while batting .391 with three home runs, nine runs scored, and a 1.308 OPS. He was later named the National League Player of the Month for September after hitting .328/.377/.731 with 13 home runs, thirty RBIs, and a 1.108 OPS. O'Neill finished the 2021 season with 482

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...

s over 138 games, slashing .286/.352/.560 with 34 home runs, eighty RBIs, and 15 stolen bases. He won his second consecutive

in left field, being one of five Cardinals (a MLB record) to win the award.

2022

O'Neill opened the season as the club's starting left fielder. In mid-May, he lost his salary arbitration case against the Cardinals, and will make $3.4 million as opposed to his requested salary of $4.15 million. He struggled to open the season, slashing .195/.256/.297 with two home runs and 42 strikeouts over 32 games before he was placed on the injured list in mid-May with a sore shoulder. He was activated on June 7. On June 20, he was placed back on the injured list with a hamstring injury before being activated in mid-July. He was placed back on the injured list with another hamstring injury in September, and missed the remainder of the season. Over 96 games with the Cardinals, he hit .228 with 14 home runs and 48 RBIs. He was sent to play for the

Salt River Rafters The Salt River Rafters are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick near Scottsdale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility of ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fille ...

after the season to rehab.

2023

On January 13, 2023, O'Neill agreed to a one-year, $4.95 million contract with the Cardinals, avoiding salary arbitration.

Personal

O'Neill plays the

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, and entertained his teammates in the clubhouse during

in 2017 by playing the theme song to the "Lord of the Rings" film series on a keyboard. He has said his favourite song to play is "

O Canada "O Canada" (french: Ô Canada, italic=no) is the national anthem of Canada. The song was originally commissioned by Lieutenant Governor of Quebec Théodore Robitaille for the 1880 Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day ceremony; Calixa Lavallée composed the ...

." An avid

weightlifter Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lif ...

, O'Neill has been recorded on video quarter-

squatting Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...

as much as . He was given the nickname "

Popeye Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar.Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:ONeill, Tyler 1995 births Living people Arizona League Mariners players Bakersfield Blaze players Baseball people from British Columbia Baseball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Canadian expatriate baseball players in the United States Clinton LumberKings players Everett AquaSox players Gold Glove Award winners Canadian sportspeople of Irish descent Jackson Generals (Southern League) players Major League Baseball outfielders Major League Baseball players from Canada Memphis Redbirds players Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada Pan American Games medalists in baseball Peoria Javelinas players Sportspeople from Burnaby St. Louis Cardinals players Tacoma Rainiers players World Baseball Classic players of Canada 2015 WBSC Premier12 players 2017 World Baseball Classic players Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games

Early life and amateur career

Professional career

Seattle Mariners

St. Louis Cardinals

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Personal

See also

References

External links