<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4N0YFD_0lhoYT9o00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4N0YFD_0lhoYT9o00" width="1920" height="1080" > ST. LOUIS — So here’s the question: What happens next? The Cardinals have a situation, what is essentially a difference of opinion between manager Oliver Marmol and outfielder Tyler O’Neill, about a moment in Tuesday night’s loss to Atlanta. O’Neill was thrown out at the plate in the seventh inning. In comments after the game, the manager said he felt the player did not give 100 percent effort, and the player disagreed. <nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> Any doubts about whether this would become “a thing” were officially erased on Wednesday morning, when reporters entered Marmol office for his regular pregame chat. “It’s not a different view (of the play). There’s a standard, and it’s here,” Marmol said, holding his hand up by his head. “You meet it, you play. You don’t meet it, you don’t play.” MORE: <a href="https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/pitch-clock-mental-effects-how-mlb-pitchers-hitters-adjust-routines/tgccuqfnmeiezeuzh9ei2tie" rel="nofollow"> How MLB players are tweaking their in-game routines in the pitch clock era </a> The lineup sheet was sitting there on Marmol’s desk, and O’Neill’s name was not in the starting nine. He was asked whether that play Tuesday was why O’Neill wasn’t starting Wednesday. Marmol’s reply spoke volumes: “Dylan Carlson is in center field today.” <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Tyler O’Neill has been benched today due to his lack of effort on this play “There’s a standard… You don’t meet it, you don’t play.” -Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnDenton555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="nofollow"> @JohnDenton555 </a><a href="https://t.co/MnBfpQN0AJ" rel="nofollow"> pic.twitter.com/MnBfpQN0AJ </a> — Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) <a href="https://twitter.com/TalkinBaseball_/status/1643642742885478400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="nofollow"> April 5, 2023 </a></blockquote><nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> Asked another question, he was more direct. “All right, let’s keep it super simple. There’s gonna be a style of play that we are known for. And it’s going to involve effort, and it’s going to involve being relentless and it's gonna involve being smart. And we’re going to keep guys to that, because that’s how you sustain being good for a long time. There’s a lot of good players in that clubhouse, and down below. And I love competition. And the last thing you want to do when you’re in competition is open up a window. So, that’s where I’m at.” O’Neill spoke with reporters pregame, too. “I definitely didn’t feel like I was going slower coming around third base. I was focused on taking a tight turn. And you know, it is what it is. I went back and ran the replay and ran the clock, and I think I was second to home in about six and a half seconds. So I don’t necessarily know what big league average is or whatever that’s categorized as, but that’s what I got myself. Thought I gave it a pretty good effort but, you know, again, it was a heck of a throw and it’s a good baseball play on their part.” <nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> Not surprisingly, he disagreed with his manager’s assessment of his effort. “You know, I came up through the minor leagues and into the big leagues playing hard and playing scrappy, and you know, that’s who I am,” O’Neill said. “That’s my character. And I don’t ever want anyone to take that away from me.” Not surprisingly, he wasn’t too happy this became “a thing.” “These conversations definitely could have been had in-house and not gotten out on the loose like they have,” O’Neill said. “Should have been handled a little differently, in my opinion, but you know, who’s to say?” On Tuesday night after the game, O’Neill talked about working to make sure he’s healthy enough to play a full season. He played just 96 last year, with a variety of issues. Marmol was asked Monday morning whether that was maybe a reason for what happened Tuesday. <nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> “Everybody wants to stay healthy — Arenado, Goldy, Donovan, Edman, go down the list,” Marmol said. “Everybody wants to stay healthy. That doesn’t compute for me.” Yeah. It’s a situation. MORE: <a href="https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/mlb-2023-overreactions-shohei-ohtani-mvp-stolen-bases-runs/nnerfepdjyotl991vdg9wedv" rel="nofollow"> 8 overreactions (that might not be overreactions) from MLB’s opening weekend </a> So, again, here’s the real question: What happens next? The Cardinals have a crowded outfield situation, but O’Neill came out of spring training — after his successful stint for Canada in the World Baseball Classic — as the club’s starting center fielder. He did good work in the offseason and spring training showing the team that he was capable of playing center field. So, in an ideal world for the club, he’d show the type of effort Marmol is looking for, and he’d play like he did in 2021, when he hit 34 home runs, stole 15 bases, won a Gold Glove (playing left field), posted a 6.1 bWAR and finished eighth in the NL MVP voting. That’s the O’Neill they gave the job to this spring. <nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> “Competition is a really good thing. This isn’t a negative,” Marmol said. “You have an opportunity to cave and give into it and or you can look in the mirror, figure out what you want to do, and then show different. My hope is, that’s the road we go down. He paused. “But we do have a lot of good players.” It was the second time Marmol had brought up that idea. And he’s not wrong. The Cardinals came into the season with O’Neill in center and with WBC hero Lars Nootbaar and rookie phenom Jordan Walker manning the corners. Carlson, who started 243 games in the outfield for the club from 2020 to 2022, was the fourth outfielder. Rookie Alec Burleson made the club as a reserve outfielder/DH, and both Brendan Donovan and Tommy Edman can play the outfield, too. <nbtemplate data-id="AdPlaceholder" data-content="JTdCJTdE"></nbtemplate> Marmol didn’t say this, of course, but it wouldn’t be a stretch to think the Cardinals could at least figure out what the market might look like for an O’Neill trade. O’Neill is under club control through the end of the 2024 season. He has value, and the club does have needs. The Cardinals were optimistic about their rotation heading into the season, but the group has not looked very solid early. If they could get a No. 2 or 3 starter in a deal involving O’Neill, they’d have to consider it. Remember, last season they dealt outfielder Harrison Bader for starter Jordan Montgomery. That’s probably premature, but something needs to happen to fix this situation. It should be fascinating to see what happens next. </div></body>

Mountain View, CA

The Cardinals have a situation, what is essentially a difference of opinion between manager Oliver Marmol and outfielder Tyler O’Neill, about a moment in Tuesday night’s loss to Atlanta.