The Baltimore Orioles have finalized a three-year deal with outfielder Tyler O’Neill, which includes a player opt-out option after the 2025 season. Additionally, they completed a one-year contract with catcher Gary Sánchez on Tuesday.
O’Neill’s contract is worth $49.5 million, evenly spread across the next three seasons at $16.5 million per year. Sánchez, likely to serve as a backup to All-Star catcher Adley Rutschman, received an $8.5 million deal.
O’Neill posted a .241 batting average with 31 home runs and 61 RBIs during his first season with Boston, after previously starting his MLB career with St. Louis. He homered in his first game with the Red Sox, setting a major league record by hitting a homer in his fifth consecutive Opening Day appearance.
The 29-year-old outfielder earned the American League Comeback Player of the Year award from the MLB Players Association this season. After playing just 72 games in 2023, he was traded to Boston from the Cardinals, where injuries limited him to 113 games. Despite that, it marked his second-highest total of games played in a season, trailing only his 138-game performance in 2021, during which he set career bests in batting average (.286), home runs (34), RBIs (80), and stolen bases (15).
O’Neill’s ability to play both corner outfield positions could prove valuable if the Orioles lose switch-hitting power hitter Anthony Santander to free agency. O’Neill’s right-handed bat adds balance to the lineup, complementing left-handed hitters such as Gunnar Henderson, Colton Cowser, Jackson Holliday, Heston Kjerstad, and Cedric Mullins.
Sánchez, who hit .220 with 11 home runs and 37 RBIs in 89 games with Milwaukee last season, has accumulated 184 home runs and 485 RBIs over his 10-year MLB career. He finished second in the 2016 American League Rookie of the Year voting behind Detroit pitcher Michael Fulmer.
Roki Sasaki, a hard-throwing 23-year-old right-handed pitcher from Japan, has been posted to MLB teams and will be available for signing starting Tuesday. The Orioles could be among the teams interested in him. Koby Perez, the Orioles’ vice president of international scouting, mentioned that the team plans to conduct its “due diligence” regarding the Japanese pitching sensation.
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