Re-ranking the ceilings of the St. Louis Cardinals outfielders

Tyler O'Neill #27 and Lars Nootbaar #21 of the St. Louis Cardinals celebrate. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
Tyler O'Neill #27 and Lars Nootbaar #21 of the St. Louis Cardinals celebrate. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 18: Tyler O’Neill #27 of the St. Louis Cardinals hits a home run during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on June 18, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 18: Tyler O’Neill #27 of the St. Louis Cardinals hits a home run during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on June 18, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) /

2. Tyler O’Neill

Injuries have plagued Tyler O’Neill this season, and when he’s had extended runs at the plate in the bigs, he has started to figure out his swing once again. The Canadian has been heating up once again as of late and is beginning to look like the 2021 version many fell in love with.

O’Neill over the last 14 days has a .916 OPS, and the last week it has raised to 1.177. Tyler’s ability to mash a baseball, play elite defense, and be a game changer on the basepaths has made him a tantalizing talent, and when it all comes together, few in baseball have a ceiling like him.

On the season, the 27-year old is slashing .231/.306/.388 with 12 HR and 55 RBI. If O’Neill keeps up his current pace, he could easily see his OPS rise above .700, which would be a huge win after how rough of a start he had an how many injuries the slugger battled.

The club’s continued faith in O’Neill shows you just how high the organization believes his ceiling is as well. St. Louis knows that when O’Neill gets it going at the plate, he is an MVP level talent and gives the Cardinals a three-headed monster that no other team in baseball can compete with. In 2021, O’Neill slashed .286/.352/.540 with 34 HR and 80 RBI while finishing 8th in MVP voting. It’s hard to imagine Burleson, Nootbaar, or Carlson having that kind of season.

You could argue O’Neill may have one of the lowest floors out of this group, but his ceiling is just too high, and achievable, for O’Neill not to be number two on this list. And yet, the guy who takes the number one spot on this list has potential that this organization has not had in a prospect since Oscar Taveras.