Red Sox News: Cardinals Trade Tyler O'neill for Nick Robertson, Victor Santos

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Tyler O'Neill has been traded to the Boston Red Sox, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

The Cardinals will receive pitchers Nick Robinson and Victor Santos in the deal, per Alex Speier of The Boston Globe.

In 266 plate appearances during the 2023 season, O'Neill hit .231 while racking up nine home runs and 21 RBIs. Although his offensive production hasn't been spectacular throughout the past couple of seasons, O'Neill remains a superb defender who has two Gold Glove awards to his name.

The Red Sox will likely hope that he's able to recapture his 2021 form at Fenway Park next season. During that breakout year, O'Neill hit 34 homers and knocked in 80 RBIs while posting a career-high .912 OPS. He finished eighth in National League MVP voting as the Cardinals won 90 games.

He's been plagued by injuries ever since, appearing in just 168 contests throughout the past two seasons. This included a foot issue that caused him to miss the final 14 games of his 2023 campaign.

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak hasn't been shy about O'Neill's future with the team, telling reporters about the front office's intent to move him to a location where he can get consistent playing time.

"We feel like getting [O'Neill] everyday at-bats is going to be really difficult, given our outfield and with the way we predict it will line up," Mozeliak said, per John Denton of MLB.com. "So, when you're looking at exploring the trade market, we could ignore it and not say his name, but I mean, it's coming to the point where it's kind of obvious."

While he sympathized with O'Neill's situation, Mozeliak was focused on finding an outcome that would be beneficial for all parties involved.

"In the end, it probably makes sense if we're able to do something because, look, he sees himself as an everyday player," he said. "And, you know, candidly, we do too, but when you look at who else we have, it's going to be tough to find those at-bats."

After dealing outfielder Alex Verdugo to the New York Yankees on Tuesday, the Red Sox will look for O'Neill to fill his role.