Why I’m not a fan of Tyler O’Neill

At first glance you might think he just got done at a USAPL meet (USA Power Lifting) or at a body building competition. But he is St. Louis Cardinals Prospect Tyler O’Neill. He is 22 years old, 5'10 210 pounds, bats right throws right, and plays the corner outfield spots. He looks like he can hit the ball 600 feet, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he can. Despite the power and size, something about that swing just doesn’t play.

In 2016 he spent the entire season in AA for the Jackson Generals which is a part of the Mariners system. In 130 games and 575 plate appearances he had 150 strikeouts. This just can’t happen. In AAA between the Mariners and Cardinals organizations, in 130 games and 557 plate appearances he had 151 strikeouts. In 2016 he hit .293 with 24 homeruns and in 2017 he hit .246 with 31 home runs.

Now with power normally comes more strikeouts, but 150 is just too many, and the cardinals need to get back to old school cardinal baseball. He is competing this year for the 4th outfield spot, but I would have rather traded him and Harrison Bader for another big bat or big arm and kept Grichuk as the 4th outfielder. If O’Neill wants to make the team, he’s going to need to change his approach, because the strikeouts haven’t gone down this spring training either.