St. Louis Cardinals Superlatives for the 2022 Season

May 23, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (46) is congratulated by teammates at home plate after hitting a walk-off grand slam against the Toronto Blue Jays during the tenth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
May 23, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (46) is congratulated by teammates at home plate after hitting a walk-off grand slam against the Toronto Blue Jays during the tenth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
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St. Louis Cardinals Tyler O'Neill
ST LOUIS, MO – MAY 01: Tyler O’Neill #27 of the St. Louis Cardinals reacts after being caught stealing second base against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the third inning at Busch Stadium on May 1, 2022 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /

Biggest Disappointment: Tyler O’Neill

Coming into the 2022 season, Tyler O’Neill was a dark horse MVP candidate after a breakout 2021 season that saw him finish top 10 in NL MVP voting on his way to his second Gold Glove.

Unfortunately, O’Neill has been nowhere near his elite production at the plate. Slashing only .195/.256/.297 with 2 home runs and 42 strikeouts in only 118 ABs, O’Neill was being benched in favor for red hot Juan Yepez before landing on the IL with a shoulder injury.

It is way too early to give up on O’Neill, and he has plenty of time to turn it around. The hope for fans would be that he goes from early season disappointment to turnaround story of the season. Even if he does not return to his red hot form from the 2nd half of 2021, an improved bat would make a world of a difference for the Cardinals lineup for the rest of the season.