ST. LOUIS -- Near the end of 2012's Avengers, Tony Stark takes a break from saving the world and pours a whiskey while the villain, Loki, looks on with confidence. When threatened with the destruction of the world, Stark tells Loki no matter what happens, his team will avenge it. Loki claims to have a higher power to which Iron Man plainly responds, "we have a hulk!"
The St. Louis Cardinals have a hulk, and his name is Tyler O'Neill. When the rest of the Major Leagues, aka Loki, threatens them with outs and losses, the Cardinals can just tell O'Neill to smash. That's what he did over the weekend against the Philadelphia Phillies.
After a cup of coffee in April yielded zero hits in just seven at-bats, O'Neill arrived last week for another cup, this time asking for a shot of espresso in it, making it a red eye. The result was the 22-year-old Canadian giving a few baseballs a black eye.
In eight at-bats, O'Neill has five hits, including two no doubt home runs that changed the entire look of a game. They weren't extra tabs in a 10-2 loss or win; O'Neill's blasts gave the Cardinals a lead with each swing, thus turning a tight game into a more comfortable one. The guy singled so hard, his helmet fell off his head.
O'Neill's power was the main reason Cardinals President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak traded Marco Gonzales to Seattle for the slugger exactly ten months ago. Gonzales was a young and promising pitching prospect who couldn't stay healthy, so the Cards collected a big stick in return for his services. It was the presence of O'Neill that made Randal Grichuk and Stephen Piscotty expendable in the offseason. He was younger than Grichuk and not as expensive as Piscotty, even if the latter talent was in dire need of going home to Oakland. O'Neill made it a comfortable decision. His power plays.
Here's the thing: with the Cardinals struggling to consistently produce enough offense to give their pitchers a chance, there's no reason for O'Neill to take a seat. O'Neill did more damage in one day than Marcell Ozuna had in a week. Ozuna's slugging % is hanging below .400 and he is producing weak contact, so sitting him occasionally is a no brainer. Dexter Fowler's bat may have found a pulse this past week, but he doesn't have to play every day. O'Neill should play this entire series against Kansas City, a team with the worst pitching in the Majors.
That's right. The Royals' 5.55 ERA and 71 home runs allowed are the worst in baseball, which practically makes them a bleeding leg in an ocean for sharks to feast on. The Cardinals need to unleash O'Neill on them without hesitation. In order to win a lot of baseball games, loyalty and salary need to be shoved to the side for the right guy to get a shot. In this case, O'Neill is the big guy the Cardinals need right now.
He hit a two-run home run off a talented arm in Aaron Nola on Sunday, stretching a Cardinals lead to 3-1 and helping chase the Phillies starter out of the game. If you start the kid this week, you'll get more of that. Perhaps, the kid can make a couple of these games easier to digest.
O'Neill's power wasn't born yesterday. He smashed 31 home runs in 2017, including 12 in just 37 games with the Memphis Redbirds. This year, he had 13 home runs in just 39 games before St. Louis gave him the second call. O'Neill's lifetime slugging percentage in the minors is .521. All this kid has done is crush teams all over the country.
I know what you're thinking. He's hit two home runs and we are ready to carve a statue next to Stan Musial for the kid. While that's not out of the question, especially if he stays and destroys pitching for a decade, the idea is simpler. Pitchers don't know this kid. They can't watch his swings on a tablet and instantly download all his tells and weaknesses. They will be tentative and try to get him to bite on sliders and breaking pitches. With O'Neill's better plate discipline this year, that won't be so easy.
If they miss with a fastball, he'll launch it.
If they miss with a breaking ball, he'll destroy it.
If they try to bury a slider, he'll take it and wait for a mistake.
Ozuna and Fowler don't have to be banished due to O'Neill's arrival, but it's not a bad idea if they feel a slight push from his breakout. There's no reason for the Cardinals to think twice about starting O'Neill this week. He's the new kid on the block with a big swing. A hulk who smashes baseballs. I mean, look at the kid, he can barely fit into his shirt. The biceps bust at the seams, but the thighs make the pants work extra hard as well. He's a beast, so don't keep him in the dungeon. Let him out.
The Cards rank among the lower half of baseball in slugging and home runs. O'Neill could help change that, so turn him loose this week, Matheny. It almost makes too much sense.