Early life

O'Neal was born in Ashland, Kentucky. He attended Palm Beach Community College in West Palm Beach, Florida, and then accepted an athletic scholarship to transfer to the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for the Florida Gators baseball team in 1981. During his single season as a Gator, he led the pitching staff with 108 innings pitched and nine complete games—including one in the SEC Tournament and another in the NCAA Tournament. He was an SEC All-Tournament selection.

Career

The Detroit Tigers selected O'Neal in the first round (15th pick) of the secondary phase of the 1981 amateur draft. O'Neal played his first professional season with their Class A-Advanced Lakeland Tigers in 1981, and his last season with the Kansas City Royals' Double-A Memphis Chicks in 1991.

O'Neal made his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers in 1984, and he played for the Tigers until 1986, compiling a win-loss record of 10-13 in twenty-six starts. He also pitched two complete games for the Tigers, as well as three saves in relief. After being traded by the Tigers, he became a journeyman middle reliever, playing for the Atlanta Braves, St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants in succession. He finished his seven-season MLB career having played in 142 games with a record of 17-19.

He is a high school teacher at Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando, Florida, where he is also the head coach of the Lake Highland Highlanders baseball team. He is also a former coach for the Olympia Spartans.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]