Ex-Red Sox Star 'Surprised' By Boston Before $49.5M Deal With Orioles
![Mar 11, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; A detailed view of Baltimore Orioles baseball hats and gloves in the dugout during the first inning against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images Mar 11, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; A detailed view of Baltimore Orioles baseball hats and gloves in the dugout during the first inning against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_5365,h_3017,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/inside_the_red_sox/01jfb5jft9d6ntmyr9m1.jpg)
The Boston Red Sox needed some right-handed talent before the 2024 Major League Baseball season kicked off.
To fill one of their biggest holes, Boston swung a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals for outfielder Tyler O'Neill. Boston knew he would be a free agent after the season but the deal worked out overall as he hit 31 home runs and drove in 61 runs in 113 games.
There was some speculation early in the offseason that Boston had an interest in bringing O'Neill back for the 2025 campaign to continue to help with the team's right-handed offensive issue. While this is the case, he ended up signing a three-year, $49.5 million deal with the Baltimore Orioles.
O'Neill joined WEEI's Rob Bradford on the "Baseball Isn't Boring" podcast and said he was "surprised" that there wasn't more interest from Boston before landing his deal with Baltimore.
"There just wasn't that push from that side to get me," O'Neill said as transcribed by Bradford. "Obviously, Boston was caught up in the (Juan Soto) Sweepstakes, and rightfully so. They should be in that market. They should be in the ballpark in spending that kind of money on those types of guys who are generational players. I think they should be in that conversation. But when I'm getting prioritized interest on the other side with a really good opportunity there's nothing for me to wait around on.
"I was surprised in the lack of interest. There was a little bit of interest early on at the GM Meetings in November. Obviously, every organization is going to be talking to Scott with the player personnel he had coming into the market this year. And Bres and Company made it known they were interested in me, but where I fell in the pecking order I have no idea. I don't know if I was second or fourth or fifth or whatever they looked like. So it never got to numbers. It never got to anything serious. It is what it is."
O'Neill impressed with the Red Sox and they certainly get a good look at him in 2025 as a member of the Orioles.
More MLB: Red Sox Target's Rumored Asking Price Revealed By Insider