The Cardinals plan to send Tyler O’Neill to Triple-A where he can get more regular playing time. Luke Gregerson – whose rehab time ended on Friday – will join the big league club, per MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter).
As Gregerson’s rehab time ran out, the Cardinals had to either add him to the major league roster or risk losing him. Giovanny Gallegos has an option remaining, but he has proven a valuable piece in the Cards pen, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Through ten appearances, Gallegos, 27, struck out a whopping 15.4 batters per nine innings with a 3.86 ERA. The bullpen only figures to get more crowded moving forward as Carlos Martinez prepares to begin a rehab stint with Low-A Peoria on Sunday.
Gregerson, who turns 35-years-old on May 14th, was a stud pen arm from 2009-2016 with an even 33-33 record and 2.84 ERA across 558 games for the Padres, A’s, and Astros. But he was lit up to the tune of a 7.11 ERA over 17 appearances for the Cards in 2018 before hitting the injured list in May and undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery in June. Prior to 2018, the Cardinals signed Gregerson to a two-year, $10MM contract with a vesting option for 2020 that is all but moot at this point. He would need to appear in 60 games from here on out for his $6MM option to vest.
O’Neill, 23, has shown significant power potential, but playing time has been sparse. He has seen only five starts despite appearing in 21 games overall. Serving mostly as a pinch-hitter, O’Neill has slashed .263/.282/.395. He hasn’t yet displayed the power that is a hallmark of his game, but he also has yet to play a full game on back-to-back days. Marcell Ozuna, Harrison Bader, and Jose Martinez are off to great starts this year, as is veteran Dexter Fowler, reducing O’Neill’s role to that of fifth outfielder/pinch-hitter.
Giants should trade for O’Neil
Giants don’t have anything to offer the Cards for O’Neil. Plus if the Cards don’t resign Ozuna they’ll plug O’Neil in next season in left field.
O’Neill package for Bumgarner, opens the door for Lane Thomas or another talented AAA OF in Memphis right now. They have lots of OF depth.
Lane Thomas is one of many examples of how first class the Cardinals organization is. Left for dead by the Blue Jays, St Louis has somehow found something.
Wil Smith would probably match up too
Giants could trade Erik Kratz or Gerardo Parra
Alen Hanson’s in DFA limbo too and needs to be moved for somebody.
Yeah thanks but no thanks. No cheap, young, and productive bailouts for the Giants. They’ve got nothing of value to offer in return and have a long miserable road ahead back to contention.
Or not back to contention. That’d be okay with me.
While I agree with your overall point, “productive” isn’t quite accurate at this point for O’Neil. Certainly shown a lot of promise in the minors though
O’Neil needs to work on plate discipline. He start making more contact and he’ll stick.
I understand the O’Neill demotion. He has got to somehow get that swing and miss problem under control.
Gregerson is pretty much, at this stage, just a warm body for the pen. I don’t see him offering much in results.
It is about playing time, his tendency to starlike our. He made the roster out of ST because Ozuna and Fowler were both off to poor starts and Fowler was coming off the worst year of his (and possibly any other everyday player in league history) career. When both Ozuna and Fowler rebounded and started hitting, there is no need for a fifth outfielder and the playing time isn’t there for one.
First class organization? The same organization that had to steal player info from another team? The same organization that has a blatant cheater as their catcher? The same organization that hasn’t made the playoffs since the Astros changed their passwords? I would say not anywhere near a first class or even second class organization
I guess until the Cardinal organization gets rid of John Mozeliak the Houston Saga will always be brought up. On that point I hesitantly agree that Mozeliak had to know more than he admits as to what was happening. Now Yadi??? I’ve never before heard him called a cheater. What facts do you base you evaluation and conclusion that Molina is a cheater??
Wasn’t it molina that had a ball stick to his chest protector?
Sour grapes
Milff sounds like he’s not a fan of the class organization that is the Cardinals.
I’ve known Tyler O’Neill since he was 12 and have often told him that he just needs to keep playing himself east until he reaches Yankee Stadium wearing a Yankee uniform.
Considering how sparse our outfield is due to injuries, now would be the perfect time to make that trade.
After the year he had with Houston in 2017, how could the Cardinals give home so much money? With all the guys signing minor league deals?
5 million a year isn’t exactly an albatross contract.