ST. LOUIS — Outfielder Tyler O’Neill and pitcher Dakota Hudson both were solid contributors to the St. Louis Cardinals after making their major league debuts in 2018. But it was their work in the minors that earned them accolades Monday.
O’Neill was named the organization’s Minor League Player of the Year and Hudson was tabbed the Minor League Pitcher of the Year.
O’Neill batted .311 with a .385 on-base percentage, .693 slugging percentage, 26 home runs and 63 RBIs in 64 games for Triple-A Memphis. He was leading the Pacific Coast League in homers when he got the last of his five call-ups by the Cardinals on July 31. He was recognized by Baseball America as a Triple-A All-Star, the PCL’s No. 5 overall prospect and “Best Power Hitter” in its best tools survey.
The 23-year-old batted .254 with nine homers — including one walk-off blast — and 23 RBIs in 130 at-bats for St. Louis. As he did for Memphis, he played all three outfield positions.
Hudson, 24, was 13-3 with a 2.50 ERA in 19 starts for Memphis before his July 27 promotion to St. Louis. At the time, he led minor league baseball with those 13 wins, which also rank second best in Memphis Redbirds history for a single season. Hudson was named the PCL Pitcher of the Year and earned Baseball America recognition as a Triple-A All Star, the PCL’s No. 13 overall prospect and “Best Pitching Prospect” in its best tools survey.
Hudson worked as a reliever in St. Louis, going 4-1 with a 2.63 ERA in 26 appearances. The Cardinals won the first 12 games in which he pitched.
“Both players were important pieces of the Cardinals’ resurgent stretch run after the All-Star break last season, and we look forward to their contributions in 2019,” Cardinals GM Mike Girsch said.
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