Jays reliever Green and Canadian slugger O'Neill nominated for comeback player award

NEW YORK — Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O'Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players' Association's American League comeback player award on Monday.

Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.

The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.

Green, who missed most of the 2022 and '23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.

The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.

O'Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in '22 and '23.

After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O'Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press