These days you can usually spot former Yankee right fielder and fan-favorite Paul O’Neill in the YES Network booth, making witty observations during broadcasts.

In the coming months, you’ll still see him on TV, but everyone – not just those watching Yankee games on YES – will know his name.

This afternoon it was announced that television network NBC is rebooting its hit show from 1982, Cheers – which O’Neill will be a part of. The man who the late, great George Steinbrenner once dubbed “The Warrior” will take on the role of Sam Malone, a character portrayed by actor Ted Danson in the original series.

The decision to pick up the role of a retired baseball player that runs his own bar was a no-brainer for O’Neill.

“I retired in 2001 after the World Series and I even thought about running my own bar when my baseball career ended because I didn’t know what was next,” O’Neill told the Associated Press earlier today.

“In a lot of ways I wanted my life to kind of be like Sam Malone’s life, from the show. He retired from the game and found something he loved to do. Now I can do the same. Of course on the show Sam was a pitcher and I played right field, so it’s a little different in that respect.”

Danson found success after Cheers, acting as the lead on the sitcom Becker, which ran from 1998-2004. He now works on CSI, seemingly landing hit role after hit role. Danson has seen some of O’Neill’s acting in the past, and the Emmy and Golden Globe award winner is proud to see someone carefree and fun-loving – like O’Neill – take up his mantle.

“I saw that episode of Seinfeld Paul was on in the ‘90s, and I laughed; I thought, right off the bat, he had a great sense of humor,” Danson told the AP. “I know he is perfect for the role, and I’m anxious to see how the new series is going to turn out and what direction all these wonderful characters are going to go in.”

O’Neill’s YES broadcast partner and good friend Michael Kay, albeit a bit shocked, expressed his congratulations.

“I’ve always thought Ted and Paul kind of looked a lot alike, but never would have thought in a million years this would happen,” Kay said.

“Paul is a pretty funny guy. In 2009 when the Yankees played the Red Sox in August, he sat up in the booth and ate peach yogurt when the game went into extra innings – on the air! Peach yogurt, on the air. That’s the type of personality he’ll bring to the Sam Malone character. I couldn’t be happier for him, I know he’ll do well.”

According to YES, O’Neill will work 30 games in the booth in 2013 before leaving to start filming the first season of the NBC series reboot. He will work alongside Jodie Sweetin (of Full House fame; she’ll play Diane Chambers, Shelley Long’s former character), Patton Oswalt (of King of Queens fame; he’ll play Norm Peterson, George Wendt’s former character), and David Faustino (of Married…with Children fame; he’ll play Woody Boyd, Woody Harrelson’s former character).

Roles for each of the other starring characters are still being cast.

With a new challenge ahead, plainly put, O’Neill is excited to get started.

“I can’t wait for the first table read,” he continued. “I can only hope I do as well on this sitcom as I did in right field. But I’m comfortable. I’m going where everybody knows my name.”

Cheers is expected to premier in October, the night after the World Series.

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If you believed this for one second, you’re way too gullible. Yet I suppose there isn’t anything wrong with a little yellow journalism on April 1.

HAPPY APRIL FOOL’S DAY!

More importantly, HAPPY OPENING DAY!!!

#BeatTheDrum #AndHoldThePhone #TheSunCameOutToday