One of the major faces of the Bronx Bombers during their reigns in the late 1990s and early 2000s is having his number immortalized in Monument Park this summer.
O’Neill was picked by the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth round of the MLB in June 1981 and eventually made his major league debut in 1985. After a few seasons on the pitch, the quarterback played in the His first full campaign was in 1988, appearing in 145 games while hitting 16 home runs and raking in 73 RBI.
The 58-year-old has now racked up 15 more home runs and registered 74 RBIs in 1989, before helping the Reds win the 1990 World Series by finishing the regular season with 16 runs at home and 78 RBIs and went 8 to 17 with one home run, three doubles and four RBIs in the NLCS against the Pittsburgh Pirates. O’Neill got his first All-Star team in 1991 and finished the campaign with a career-high 28 home runs. He played his final season with the Reds in 1992, before being transferred to the New York Yankees.
The left-hander’s career took a hit when he joined the Yankees, as he went on to post at least a .300 GPA in six years in a row from 1993 to 1998, including the .359 high in 1994. O’Neill also had four All-Star teams in five seasons from 1994 to 1998 and, along with the likes of Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, Tino Martinez, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera, among others, helped lead the Yankees to World Series titles in 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
As noted by USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, O’Neill will be the 23rd player or manager in Yankees franchise history to be forced to retire. More, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweeted that there are currently only 10 active numbers from 1 to 25 that have not been eliminated by the Yankees.
In the 2,053 regular games of his career, O’Neill scored 281 home runs, 1,269 RBI, 2,105 hits, 1,041 hits, 451 doubles, 141 stolen bases and one slash. 288 / .363/ .470.
