O'Neill (groin) is expected to return to game action Friday against the Reds, Zachary Silver of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill has been sidelined since April 11 due to a right groin strain, but it appears as though he'll be able to return after spending just over the minimum of 10 days on the injured list. The 25-year-old has been ramping up his sprinting recently and homered in each of his last two simulated games. O'Neill should reclaim his role as the Cardinals' primary left fielder once he's officially cleared to return.

O'Neill (groin) was placed on the 10-day injured list Sunday.

EDGE Analysis

The 25-year-old exited Saturday's loss to Milwaukee with right groin tightness, and the injury has now been diagnosed as a strain. O'Neill will be eligible to be activated April 21, and he appears to be tracking toward a minimum IL stint, as manager Mike Shildt said the outfielder's imaging was "favorable," per Katie Woo of The Athletic. Lane Thomas was promoted to bolster the Cardinals' outfield depth.

O'Neill exited Saturday's game against the Brewers due to right groin tightness, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill started in left field Saturday and grounded into a double play during his lone at-bat. However, he was replaced by Austin Dean to begin the third inning. The severity of O'Neill's injury isn't yet known, and it's unclear whether he'll be forced to miss additional time.

O'Neill, who hit .356 in Grapefruit League play, went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and an additional run scored in Thursday's season-opening win over the Reds.

EDGE Analysis

The slugger encouragingly kept his hot bat going to open the regular season, belting a 391-foot shot in the fourth inning. O'Neill's ability to continue flashing his well-documented power stroke without sacrificing consistent contact is seen as key to him taking the next step as a hitter in 2021.

O'Neil has officially clinched the starting left field job, Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill never let up this spring, pushing his Grapefruit League average to .372 with yet another multi-hit effort Saturday versus the Mets. While the strikeouts could still use some whittling down, O'Neill has racked up a well-balanced line of three doubles, two home runs, 10 RBI, two walks, three steals and five runs across 45 plate appearances in exhibition play. The 25-year-old made an impression on manager Mike Shildt with his approach, with the skipper lauding O'Neill's consistency and the fact he's "in a good place, against lefties and righties."

O'Neill went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in a Grapefruit League win over the Astros on Friday, pushing his spring average to .389 (7-for-18) across seven games.

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill has also encouragingly only struck out once over his last three games, with consistent contact being one of the main areas of his game that needs improvement. The power-hitting outfielder is looking to keep a hold on his starting left field job and is significantly helping his cause with some clutch hitting, as Friday's round tripper pushed his spring RBI total to eight.

O'Neill, who went 2-for-3 with a three-run home run in a Grapefruit League win over the Astros on Sunday, is hitting .400 (4-for-10) with a walk and two runs overall across four spring games.

EDGE Analysis

On the flip side, four of the six outs O'Neill has made have come via strikeouts, a tangible reminder he still has plenty of work to do with respect to improving his contact rate. Nevertheless, the power display Sunday was certainly encouraging as O'Neill looks to build momentum ahead of a 2021 campaign during which he'll look to put last season's .173/.261/.360 slash behind him.

O'Neill has been focusing on improving several aspects of his hitting over the last few months after mustering just a .173 average in 157 plate appearances last season, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. "I'm definitely more focused on that (offensive) side of the ball this year," O'Neill said. "I know it was a down year for me in the average department. I was still able to do some damage but obviously not in the way I would have liked and that the staff would have liked."

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill offered Gold Glove defense in 2020, but his .173/.261/.360 line and 27.4 percent strikeout rate left plenty to be desired. Consequently, the 25-year-old center fielder went right into honing his craft during the offseason and got an early jump on working with Cardinals hitting coaches this spring. Specifically, O'Neill is concentrating on refining his timing and developing a less mechanical approach at the dish after posting sub-70.0 percent contact rates in all three of his big-league stints thus far.

O'Neill will have to earn the starting left field job in spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

EDGE Analysis

Goold responds to a reader question about whether the job is O'Neill's to lose as spring training begins by confirming there is "significant competition" for both the left and right field spots. O'Neill's lack of job security isn't surprising, considering his .173/.261/.360 line across 157 plate appearances a season ago, a major regression from the .262/.311/.411 tally the 25-year-old managed in just six fewer trips to the plate in 2019. There is no shortage of candidates for O'Neill to contend with, a list that includes Dylan Carlson, Lane Thomas and Justin Williams.

O'Neill went 0-for-2 with a stolen base, a walk and a run scored in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Brewers.

EDGE Analysis

O'Neill was productive in the third inning, getting aboard with a walk before stealing second and scoring on an error by Brewers pitcher Freddy Peralta. The steal was O'Neill's third of the year, and he's added seven homers, 19 RBI and 20 runs scored in 50 games.