The Cardinals are planning to open the season with Tyler O’Neill in center field, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
He’s expected to be flanked by Lars Nootbaar and rookie Jordan Walker in the corners, with Dylan Carlson pushed into a fourth outfield role out of the gate.
O’Neill has primarily played left field over the course of his career. He’s logged over 2500 MLB innings in the corners while playing just 210 2/3 frames over 26 starts up the middle.
In spite of that lack of experience, O’Neill entered camp with his sight set on the outfield’s most demanding position. While he didn’t play much in spring training — he logged just 41 defensive innings thanks in large part to his commitment to Canada in the World Baseball Classic — the Cardinals are confident he’ll be able to assume a larger role.
It’s a bet on O’Neill’s physical tools. He’s an excellent runner with an above-average throwing arm. O’Neill has typically fared very well as a left fielder in the eyes of public metrics, securing consecutive Gold Glove awards there in 2020-21.
It’s not out of the question he carries much or all of that production a notch up the defensive spectrum. O’Neill could well have gotten more reps there in prior years had the Cards not rostered a Gold Glove-caliber center fielder in Harrison Bader for much of that time.
Carlson was the primary center fielder during last year’s second half. The 24-year-old slid over from right field once Bader landed on the injured list last June; he held that role following Bader’s trade to the Yankees.
Carlson played 530 innings at the position, rating as an above-average if not quite elite defender in the eyes of both Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast’s Outs Above Average. He paired that solid defense with a .236/.316/.380 line over 488 plate appearances, exactly league average offense as measured by wRC+.
The switch-hitting Carlson was a top prospect a few years ago. He’s been a solid player since debuting in 2020 but not made quite the impact evaluators may have anticipated, particularly from a power perspective.
The transition to fourth outfield work has to register as a disappointment but certainly doesn’t preclude Carlson from playing his way back into a larger role.
It’d require good fortune for all three starting outfielders to make it through the entire season without any injuries. There’s also at least some amount of uncertainty regarding each of the players now ahead of him on the depth chart. Walker is seen as a potentially elite talent but has yet to take a regular season at-bat above Double-A.
O’Neill is assuming the largest defensive responsibility of his career. Nootbaar set a career mark with 347 plate appearances last season. Nolan Gorman, who appears the early favorite for designated hitter work, has 89 games of MLB experience. T
here’ll be some amount of variability throughout the season depending on players’ health and performance that should afford Carlson another everyday opportunity at some point. Headed into the season, though, it appears Nootbaar, O’Neill and Walker represents the starting outfield.
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