Cardinals’ Tyler O’Neill not in lineup day after ‘unacceptable’ baserunning effort

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St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol was unhappy with Tyler O’Neill’s baserunning effort Tuesday night against the Atlanta Braves, resulting in the center fielder being left out of the starting lineup for the series finale on Wednesday. 

Tuesday night, O'Neill was thrown out at home plate by Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. to end the seventh inning, causing Marmol to take issue with O'Neill’s effort rounding third base. 

Manager Oliver Marmol of the Cardinals before the Toronto Blue Jays game at Busch Stadium on March 30, 2023, in St. Louis. (Dilip Vishwanat/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

"That’s not our style of play as far as the effort, rounding the bag there," Marmol said Tuesday. "It’s unacceptable."

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O’Neill was not in the lineup for the series finale on Wednesday, a 5-0 win for Atlanta to sweep the three-game series.

"There is a standard, and it's here," Marmol said Wednesday morning in his office as he raised his hand, according to the St. Louis Dispatch. "You meet it, you play. You don’t meet it, you don’t play." 

O’Neill told reporters it was his scheduled day off. 

Tyler O'Neill of the Cardinals is tagged out at home by Sean Murphy of the Atlanta Braves at Busch Stadium on April 4, 2023, in St Louis. (Joe Puetz/Getty Images)

"There’s going to be a style of play that we are known for, and it’s going to involve effort," Marmol said. "And it’s going to involve being relentless. It’s going to involve being smart. And we’re going to keep guys to that, because that’s how you sustain being good for a long time. There are a lot of good