Paul Andrew O’Neill is a former American Major League Baseball right fielder who last played for the New York Yankees in the Major League Baseball (MLB). The Cincinnati Reds selected O’Neill in the fourth round of the 1981 Major League Baseball draft. He is a 5-time World Series Champion in his career, once with the Cincinnati Reds while winning the championship four times with the New York Yankees.

On August 22, 2022, The New York Yankees retired Paul O’Neill’s number 21 jersey at Monument Park in New York. Many former players including Derek Jeter paid tribute to the player on his special day. But his day was a little marred by the fans’s constant booing of team owner Hal George Steinbrenner and GM Brian Cashman as the team had lost 14 of their last 18 games in the MLB.

O’Neill was born on February 25, 1963, in Columbus city in Ohio state and attended Brookhaven High School. His family was fans of the Cincinnati Reds when the player was growing up.

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The Reds drafted him in the fourth round of the 1981 MLB draft. On September 3, 1985, O’Neill made his major-league debut and singled in his first at-bat. O’Neill appeared in five games for the rest of the 1985 season, recording four hits and one RBI.

During the next two years, the player split his time between the minor league and the major league, playing in 84 games in 1987 and recording a batting average of .256 with seven home runs and 28 RBI.

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In the next two seasons, Paul O’Neill had similar stat lines but won his first World Series Title as the Cincinnati Reds defeated the Oakland Athletics, 4-0. This is their last World Series win to this date. 

On November 3, 1992, the Reds sent O’Neill to the New York Yankees in exchange for Roberto Kelly.  O’Neill batted in 141 games during his first season with the Yankees and averaged .311 batting with 20 home runs, and 75 RBIs. In the summer of 1995, he agreed to a four-year, $19 million contract with the team.

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He won his second World Series Title and his first with the Yankees in 1996 as the team defeated Atlanta Braves, 4-2. This was the 23rd World Series Title win in franchise history.

In 1997, O’Neill batted in 149 games, recording 324 total bases, 21 home runs, and 117 RBIs. O’Neill batted in 152 games and had a batting average of .317 with 24 home runs and 116 RBIs as the team won yet another World Series title in 1998, this time a 4-0 sweep of the San Diego Padres.

In 1999, O’Neill batted in 153 games as the team won consecutive titles, he hit a batting average of .285 with 19 home runs and 110 RBIs, defeating their 1996 rivals, the Atlanta Braves, in a 4-0 sweep.

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In 2000, O’Neill batted in 142 games and finished with a batting average of .283 with 18 home runs and 100 RBIs, and the Yankees won their third World Series title in a row, defeating city rivals the New York Mets 4-1.

After playing in a fourth consecutive World Series match in Game 5 of the 2001 World Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the player retired as the fans cheered for him. Long-time Yankee Team Owner George Steinbrenner termed the player a ‘Warrior’ due to his passion and love for the game.

For his playing career, O’Neill is a 5-time MLB All-Star ( 1991, 1994, 1995, 1997 and 1998) and also was the 1994 American League Batting Champion.  

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O’Neill has worked as an analyst on the New York Yankees Pre-Game Show and the New York Yankees Post-Game Show, as well as a color commentator for the YES Network since his retirement from baseball in 2001.

O’Neill, his wife, Nevalee, and their three children live in Montgomery, Ohio. He has two sons, Andrew and Aaron O’Neill along with a daughter, Alexandra. Andrew currently