Paul O'Neill Trivia Quiz

Answer: Roberto Kelly

Roberto Kelly started in the Yankees' outfield for 4 seasons before being traded straight up for O'Neill. After the trade, their careers headed in opposite directions. While O'Neill thrived on the Yankees for the next 9 years (1993 to 2001), Kelly switched teams 8 times over the following 8 years until he retired, playing his final 10 games back on the Yankees in 2000. Paul O'Neill was born on February 25, 1963 in Columbus, Ohio.

Answer: 1994

Paul hit .359 in a season which was cut short by the player's strike, which ended the season in mid-August. It was the highest batting average of his career. His averages in the other five years were .311 in 1993, .300 in 1995, .302 in 1996, .324 in 1997, and .317 in 1998. Paul attended Otterbein College in Ohio, and was drafted in 1981 by the Reds. One of his high school coaches had told a scout not to draft him because he thought he was uncoachable.

Answer: 1996 WS, game 5, vs. Atlanta Braves

O'Neill made his catch with the runners on base, with two out in the bottom of the ninth, with the Yankees clinging to a 1-0 lead. What made this impressive was that he made the catch with a very sore hamstring. It was also the very last game ever played in Atlanta's Fulton County Stadium. It gave the Yankees a 3 games to 2 lead in the series, which they eventually won in 6 games.

Answer: 4

Paul reached the 100 RBI total in consecutive seasons, getting 117 in 1997, 116 in 1998, 110 in 1999, and 100 in 2000. He came close in 3 other seasons, getting 91 in 1991 with the Reds, 95 in 1995, and 91 in 1996. His total for his entire career was 1,269 RBIs. Paul played in 5 All Star games, in 1991, 1994, 1995, 1997, and 1998.

Answer: 235

He played from July 23, 1995 to July 7, 1997 without making any errors in right field. Paul was well known for his great arm, gunning down many runners at third and home during his career. The fans in the right field seats and right field bleachers loved him. When he was at bat, the fans there would sometimes hold up signs with his name on them, with a bull's eye for the O in O'Neill.

Answer: 3

Paul played on the winning side with these pitchers: Tom Browning on the Reds on September 16, 1988, a 1-0 win over Los Angeles, David Wells on the Yankees on May 17, 1998, a 4-0 win over Minnesota, and David Cone on July 18, 1999, in a 6-0 win over Montreal.

Answer: 6

He appeared in the one W.S. with the Reds (1990), a 4-0 vicory over Oakland, and in 5 W.S. with the Yankees: 1996, a 4-2 win over Atlanta, 1998, a 4-0 win over San Diego, 1999, a 4-0 win over Atlanta, 2000, a 4-1 win over the Mets, and 2001, a 4-3 loss to Arizona. Paul O'Neill played in a total of 19 post-season series with the Yankees and Reds.

He was on the winning side in 16 of those series.

Answer: 2000

Even though Paul hit .474 to lead all hitters on the Yankees and Mets, he failed to win the Series MVP Award. That went to teammate Derek Jeter, who hit .409 with 2 home runs. Somehow, I don't think O'Neill minded, since he always put his team first. Here are his career post-season batting stats: .284 BA, 11 HRs, and 39 RBIs in 85 games.

Answer: 2001

Even though it was his last season, and he was 38 years old, Paul managed to steal 22 bases that year, and was only caught 3 times. He also set a major league record in 2001 by becoming the oldest player to steal 20 bases and hit 20 home runs in the same season.

He hit 21 homers that year. His career total in stolen bases was 141, and he hit 281 home runs. His career batting average was .288, which isn't bad considering it was only .259 when he came to the Yankees.

Answer: Samuel Clemens

Samuel Clemens, AKA Mark Twain, was a cousin to Paul's great-grandmother, Mary Clemens. Paul has another famous relative, his sister Molly O'Neill. She is the food critic for the New York Times, has hosted her own PBS TV show, and has written her own cookbook. Molly was the oldest of 6 children and was the only girl in the family. Paul was the youngest.

While growing up, the brothers would play baseball together frequently, and young Paul would cry every time he didn't get a hit. Considering he was well known for sulking after every bad at bat later on, it's not much of a surprise.