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On Opening Night for Moore League baseball, the dean of the league’s head coaches celebrated another terrific milestone on Bohl Diamond at Blair Field. Lakewood’s Spud O’Neil earned career win No. 947 with the Lancers’ 9-0 win over Cabrillo, moving him into second place on the all-time wins list in California.
O’Neil is behind just one coach–John Stevenson of El Segundo–who collected 1,059 wins in his coaching career.
“Coach Stevenson and I were friends, and it’s an honor to be up there with him,” said O’Neil, reflecting on his 45 years as head coach.
Spud has been patrolling the Lakewood dugout since 1984, winning a pair of CIF titles and 23 Moore League championships. Since 2017, the Lancers have played their home games on Walter “Spud” O’Neil Field, after it was renamed in his honor.
O’Neil became just the fourth baseball coach in California history to reach 900 career wins, and finished the 2024 season with 958 victories. While looking back on those wins, Spud was sure to thank his long line of assistant coaches who’ve helped him out along the way, including his current staff of Vic Guzman, Davis Towne, Alex Van Horn, and John Yakel.
“You look back at all the places that I’ve coached at, I’ve had great assistant coaches, and right here, these guys are awesome,” said O’Neil.
Wherever his final win total ends up, it’s safe to say that O’Neil has earned his place among the all-time greats, and for as long as they play baseball at Lakewood, they’ll remember the name Spud O’Neil.
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