Cards, O'Neill enjoy warm pregame reunion

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Tyler O'Neill spent his entire six-year MLB career with the Cardinals before he was dealt to the Red Sox this past offseason, so it made sense that he wanted to leave an impression the first time he faced his former club.

While late-game homers or diving catches in right field weren’t in the cards for O’Neill during St. Louis’ 8-6 win against Boston on Tuesday afternoon at JetBlue Park, he spent ample time catching up with his old teammates during pregame batting practice, and he hugged skipper Oliver Marmol before the two parted ways.

“It was good to see the boys over there,” O'Neill said. “There were a lot of good, positive relationships that I've formed over the last couple of years. ... I hope they go and do something good in the National League this year and we meet them up in the World Series.”

O’Neill’s Dec. 8 departure from St. Louis was a move that benefitted each side. The Cardinals saved money on his final year of arbitration eligibility and added a reliever with Minor League options in Nick Robertson, and a Minor League starting pitching prospect in Victor Santos.

O’Neill, in turn, got a fresh start with a new club after a myriad of injuries frustratingly shortened his 2022 and ‘23 campaigns following an impressive ‘21 season during which he hit .286 with 34 home runs, 80 RBIs and an OPS+ of 148.

The Cardinals -- who had committed to the outfield trio of Lars Nootbaar, Tommy Edman and Jordan Walker (though recent injuries have forced them to pivot) -- also solved that logjam and beefed up their pitching depth, while O’Neill gained the opportunity to play every day.

“The way he moves is very fundamentally sound, something that I expect from guys that come from [the Cardinals’] organization and the intensity,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “I think people are going to love him up [in Boston] because he’s very intense. … It’s been fun.”

Have a day, Burly!
Nootbaar’s freak injury on March 2 was a blow to the Cardinals’ Opening Day outfield plans, but it also opened the door for guys like Alec Burleson.

Burleson slugged his first homer of the spring to lead off the third inning and plated St. Louis’ first run on a line-drive single in the first against the Red Sox. The 25-year-old, who was likely on the outside looking in as far as breaking camp with the team, has used a boost in playing time to state his case for a roster spot, slashing .407/.484/.556 across 11 Grapefruit League games.

"This is kind of what we think Burleson is,” Marmol said. "He's taking this as an opportunity. He knows what's at stake, and when I say 'determined', he wants the job, and it's fun to watch him as he prepares and takes his at-bats.

"He's done a nice job."

Nootbaar sustained two nondisplaced rib fractures on his left side attempting to make a catch in left field against the Astros. While the estimated timeline still could allow him to be ready for Opening Day, it seems unlikely given that Nootbaar is set to miss most of the rest of camp.

He's the second outfielder unlikely to be ready by Opening Day, as Edman is still battling soreness in his surgically repaired right wrist and has not seen live pitching or been able to swing a bat right-handed.

Rotation, rotation
As the battle for the No. 5 spot in the rotation between Matthew Liberatore and Zack Thompson progresses, the club is looking for consistency from Liberatore, who brought more of his best to the competition on Tuesday.

"I'm really happy with how everything came out today,” said Liberatore, who fanned five, touched 97 mph on the radar and had a mid-90s fastball throughout his four frames. Four of Liberatore's five earned runs came on a pair of two-run homers, but he and Marmol were pleased with the rest of his 71-pitch day.

"I threw everything for strikes, [and] threw everything in the dirt," Liberatore said. "I felt like I competed my [butt] off today. ... Just two pitches, really, that didn't go my way."

Barring injury, each contender should make the roster -- one will enter the rotation; the other, ostensibly, for long relief -- and because of that, the final decision over their placement could come as late as Opening Day in Los Angeles. Prior to facing the Red Sox, Liberatore allowed three earned runs across three outings (eight innings), including three scoreless frames against Houston his last time out.