The Cardinals introduced Sunday morning that they’ve positioned outfielder Tyler O’Neill on the 10-day injured record with a proper foot sprain. First baseman Juan Yepez was recalled from Triple-A within the corresponding transfer. The sprain presumably brings O’Neill’s 2023 marketing campaign to a detailed, given the restricted time remaining on the schedule.
Regardless of rampant hypothesis early within the season that the membership might deal O’Neill following an incident again in April the place he was benched by supervisor Oli Marmol for a perceived lack of hustle, no such commerce materialized. That might be thanks a minimum of partially resulting from O’Neill’s tough first half. The 28-year-old made it into simply 29 video games with the Cardinals previous to the All Star break because of a low again pressure, slashing simply .228/.283/.337 with a 34.3% strikeout fee in these first 99 journeys to the plate this season.
Whereas his season began off on a tough word, O’Neill has appeared vastly improved on the plate in latest months. His .233/.329/.445 slash line in 167 plate appearances since coming back from damage shortly after the All Star break is much extra palatable than his early season numbers. His strikeout fee has plummeted to 19.8% over that interval, whereas his stroll fee has ticked as much as 12.6%, a substantial soar from the 7.1% fee he posted within the first half. With that improved self-discipline on the plate and the flexibility to play middle area, O’Neill might be a priceless participant to the Cardinals as he heads into his ultimate 12 months of staff management in 2024, whether or not that be as a commerce chip or as a bit of the membership’s outfield subsequent 12 months.
With Lars Nootbaar and Jordan Walker presumably locked in as every single day gamers, O’Neill must struggle for enjoying time with the likes of Yepez, Dylan Carlson and Alec Burleson for enjoying time, assuming trades aren’t made to clear the membership’s outfield logjam.
Yepez will get his first prolonged alternative this season to showcase his abilities on the huge league degree. After a stable rookie marketing campaign with the Cardinals the place he batted .253/.296/.447 in 76 video games, Yepez has made simply 46 plate appearances within the majors this 12 months, slashing a lackluster .214/.283/.381 in that restricted taking part in time. That being mentioned, Yepez has gotten on a heater on the Triple-A degree in latest weeks with a .305/.356/.481 slash line over his previous 45 video games. If he can hold that type of manufacturing up on the huge league degree within the ultimate weeks of the season, Yepez might re-establish himself as a contender for extra taking part in time within the majors headed into 2024.
Extra from St. Louis…
The Cardinals can be with out left-hander JoJo Romero for longer than initially anticipated, as famous by MLB.com. Marmol instructed reporters that Romero, who went on the injured resulting from knee tendinitis, is “nonetheless engaged on strengthening his knee” and that the present plan is for him to throw one other facet session Sunday earlier than figuring out when he’ll return to motion. Romero has taken on a excessive leverage function within the St. Louis bullpen within the weeks because the membership moved on from nearer Jordan Hicks on the commerce deadline, and the 27-year-old lefty has thrived in his new function. In 17 innings (12 appearances) since recording his first save, Romero has posted a 3.18 ERA with a microscopic 0.79 FIP. That unimaginable determine is because of a whopping 35.8% strikeout fee towards a minuscule 3% stroll fee throughout that span.
St. Louis parted methods with right-hander Jack Flaherty on the commerce deadline, dealing him to the Orioles in a buzzer-beating deal that introduced again a trio of kids. That deal coming to fruition was removed from a assure, nonetheless. As reported by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Cardinals almost got here to an settlement with the Rays to ship Flaherty to Tampa. The deal collapsed within the medical evaluation stage of the method. Since then, the Rays have misplaced left-hander Shane McClanahan to Tommy John surgical procedure, additional weakening the membership’s beginning rotation. Whereas it’s price questioning if Tampa’s curiosity within the pending free agent might carry over into the offseason, it ought to be famous that Flaherty has struggled badly since becoming a member of the Orioles, with a 7.11 ERA in seven begins for Baltimore.
