The Baltimore Orioles have made their first big move of free agency.
The team agreed with Boston Red Sox outfielder Tyler O’Neill on Saturday evening to a three-year deal worth $49.5 million that includes an opt-out after the 2025 season. The news was first reported by Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
O’Neill had one of the best seasons of his career in 2024 with 31 home runs in 113 games with an OPS of .847 both of which were the second-best marks of his career. In September, he hit a walk-off three-run home run for the Red Sox against Baltimore.
But 2024 was also just the second time in O’Neill’s seven-year career that he has played over 100 games, making his injury risk a major factor in negotiations despite the success he saw this past season.
Prior to being traded to Boston last offseason, O’Neill had spent the first six years of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals. He is a two-time Gold Glove winner in both 2020 and 2021 and his career-best 2021 season saw him finish top-ten in National League MVP voting.
That year, in a career-high 138 games played, O’Neill hit 34 home runs with a batting average of .286, an on-base percentage of .352, an OPS of .912, a slugging percentage of .560, and an OPS+ of 148, all marks that were the best of his career.
The question now becomes whether this officially ends any chance that the Orioles bring back Anthony Santander after signing a power-hitting outfielder for major money that will still come at a smaller price than Baltimore’s All-Star will eventually sign.
But for now, the Orioles have made a big-time signing that fans can be excited for the potential.
Discussion about this post