Top 50 Miami Marlins
Along with the Colorado Rockies, the Florida Marlins came into existence in 1993, although they have been far more successful than their expansion counterparts.
The Marlins won the Pennant in only their fourth year of existence, but surely, they could not beat the New York Yankees for the World Series! Florida did precisely that, shocking the world, and then they surprised everyone by conducting a fire sale, dismantling the team, and starting from scratch.
Florida again built a good team in 2003 and once again befuddled the baseball world by winning their second World Series. True to form, they repeated what they did after 1997 by cost-cutting and getting rid of the parts that won it for them.
Since that time, the Marlins changed their team name to the Miami Marlins but have remained to operate as a small market team.
This list is up to the end of the 2021 regular season.
Note: Baseball lists are based on an amalgamation of tenure, traditional statistics, advanced statistics, playoff statistics, and post-season accolades.
Drafted in the 2nd Round of the 2007 Amateur Draft, Giancarlo Stanton would move quickly through the Marlins organization, debuting at age 20 for the parent club in 2010. Stanton immediately showed off his power game, smacking 22 Home Runs as a rookie in 396 Plate Appearances, and two years later, he won his first Slugging Title (.608) with a trip to his first All-Star Game. After a sub-par by his standard 2013, Stanton roared back, winning the Home Run (37) and Slugging Title (.555) and was second for the MVP. Stanton missed many games due to injuries in both 2015 and…
When we talk about the Marlins players, like we did with Giancarlo Stanton, the real good ones are often traded to avoid paying expanding salaries. This would also be the case with Hanley Ramirez, but it is also the method in which he arrived. After playing only two Games for the Red Sox in 2005, he was traded at season's end to Florida as one of the many players sent in exchange for Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell. Ramirez became an instant player with the Marlins, winning the National League Rookie of the Year. The Shortstop had no sophomore slump, increasing his stats…
As of this writing, the man we are anointing as the greatest Pitcher in Marlins history is Josh Johnson, the lefthander who went to two All-Star Games. Johnson made his MLB debut in 2005, appearing in four Games, and he was fourth in Rookie of the Year of voting in ’06 on the strength of a 12-7/3.10 ERA year. Injuries and Tommy John surgery held him to a combined 18 Games in 2007 and 2008, but in 2009, he emerged as the staff ace, going to the All-Star Game with a 15-5 record and a 3.23 ERA. This was good, but the…
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There is one reason (and it is really big) that you could make that Luis Castillo should be near the top of the all-time Miami Marlins list. Castillo is one of three players who won both of the Marlins’ World Series rings. Well, sort of. Coming from the San Pedro de Macoris of the Dominican Republic, Castillo is one of the many on the long list of infielders to come from this baseball factory of a town. Signed as an Amateur Free Agent in 1992, Castillo made it to the Marlins in 1996 and bounced back and forth between the Minors and Majors…
Miguel Cabrera should always be thought of first as a Detroit Tiger, but it should never be forgotten that his MLB career began in Florida.` From Venezuela, Cabrera signed with the Marlins in 1999 and would make his debut with the squad in 2003, finishing fifth in Rookie of the Year voting. Cabrera was an All-Star the next four seasons, proving himself to be one of the most dynamic young hitters of the game. From 2004 to 2007, Cabrera had at least 26 Home Runs and 112 RBIs, all of which while posting a Slugging Percentage well over .500. As with the…
We may have stated that Josh Johnson was the best Marlins Pitcher of all time, but the most dynamic was Dontrelle Willis. While he was in the minors in the Cubs organization, Willis was traded to the Marlins and would debut the following year. The southpaw was an instant sensation, winning the Rookie of the Year with a 14-6 record. Willis had a sophomore slump (10-11 4.02 ERA), but his 2005 was phenomenal. Not only did Willis return to the All-Star Game, but he also led the National League in Wins (22), Complete Games (7), and Shutouts (5) and would have career highs…
Kevin Brown was only with the Marlins for two seasons, but over Brown's excellent career, it was arguably the best back-to-back campaign that he had. An All-Star with Texas in 1992, Brown signed with Baltimore for one year in 1995 before joining Florida the following season. Brown rewarded the Marlins with a spectacular year, posting a 17-11 record while leading the NL in ERA (1.89), 215 (ERA+), and WHIP (0.944), and he was the runner-up for the Cy Young. The Marlins ace had another great year in 1997 (16-8, 2.69 ERA & 205 SO) and was an All-Star for the second year…
A Rule 5 Pick from the Diamondbacks organization, Dan Uggla proved to be an excellent pickup for the Marlins. Uggla's best year was arguably his rookie season, where he finished third in Rookie of the Year voting, had a career-high 172 Hits, and batted .282. The Second Baseman was an All-Star that year and was so again in 2007, where he batted .260 with 32 Hits. After his third year, Uggla was established as a good power-hitting infielder with respectable defense. Uggla blasted over 30 Home Runs in his fourth and fifth year, giving him four straight 30-plus years in the HR…
When Jose Fernandez was 15, he and his mother successfully defected from Cuba (on their fourth attempt) and settled in Florida. A baseball prodigy, Fernandez would become a First Round Pick in the Amateur Draft in 2011, and two years later, he was a Miami Marlin. Fernandez wasn't just a rookie with a great story, and he was a phenom who won the National League Rookie of the Year with a 12-6 Record, a 2.19 ERA, and a league-leading 5.8 H/9. Fernandez had a sub-1.000 WHIP, was an All-Star, and finished third in Cy Young voting, completing one of the most dynamic…
A product of the New York Yankees organization, Mike Lowell made it to the parent club late in 1998, appearing in eight Games. The loaded Yanks traded Lowell to Miami for three players, and Lowell would become their starter at the hot corner the following year. Lowell may never have been the elite Third Baseman of the NL, but there was a time where he was in that upper-tier. He had his first 20 HR year in 2000 and would then have three straight from 2002 to 2004, all of which earned Lowell a trip to the All-Star Game. His best season as…
A member of the rare 500 Home Run club, Gary Sheffield accomplished that feat over eight teams, with two of them being clubs he had at least 100 HR. The Marlins were one of those teams. The Marlins were Sheffield’s third team, and he was traded from San Diego to Florida midway during their expansion season. Sheffield had the power, speed and average, and he had his best season with the Marlins in 1996. That year, he smacked 42 Home Runs, 120 RBIs, and led the NL in OBP (.465), OPS (1.090) and OPS+ (189). Sheffield won the Silver Slugger that year, and was…
In an earlier entry, we mentioned that Luis Castillo is one of three Marlins to have won both of the Marlins’ World Series titles, but only one of the three was a starter in both. That man in Jeff Conine. Conine would become an original Marlin, taken in the Expansion Draft from Kansas City after appearing in 37 Games for the Royals. He would become a starter at Leftfield for the Marlins, participating in all 162 Games and finishing third in National League Rookie of the Year voting. Conine had 174 Hits that year, a career-high, but he was a more complete player…
Before Christian Yelich was an MVP, he was a star on the rise with the Miami Marlins. Yelich was a late 2010 First Round Pick in 2010, and the Californian made his first appearance in the Majors three years later. Playing at Leftfield, Yelich became a starter with the Marlins in 2014, winning a Gold Glove with a 165-Hit, .2984 Batting Average. Yelich had another season in 2015, and in 2016, he increased his power stats to 21 Home Runs, captured a Silver Slugger while still flirting with a .300 BA (.298). Yelich had his second straight 170 Hit year in 2017,…
Charles Johnson was an original in the Florida Marlin organization, taken very late in the First Round of the very first Amateur Draft that the Marlins participated in. Johnson appeared in four Games in 1994, and the defensive genius became a starter for the Marlins soon after. He quickly became known for what he could do with his glove and how he understood his hurlers. Johnson was named an All-Star in 1997 and was a member of Florida's first World Series Championship Team. After the World Series win, Johnson was one of the many Marlins who was traded, with his destination,…
Cliff Floyd began his baseball career with the Montreal Expos, a team he played four years before being traded to the Florida Marlins in 1997. Floyd played mostly off the bench in his first year in Florida, but he did help them win their first World Series Championship. He became a starter in Leftfield in 1998, smacking 22 Home Runs, a total he matched again in 2000 when he batted an even .300. Floyd had his best year in a Marlins uniform in 2001, going to the All-Star Game and hitting 31 Home Runs, 103 RBIs with a .317 Batting Average. Floyd had…
From the Dominican Republic, Marcell Ozuna was signed in 2008, and five years later debuted for the Miami Marlins. Ozuna became a fixture in Rightfield as a sophomore, peppering 23 Home Runs in 2014, a number he duplicated in 2016, which was his first All-Star season. Ozuna followed that with a breakout campaign, blasting 37 Home Runs with 123 RBIs with a .312 Batting Average. In addition to obtaining his second All-Star invitation, he won his first Gold Glove and Silver Slugger. As typical with the Marlins, Ozuna was traded before he could be priced out, with the Cardinals being his landing…
The Marlins drafted J.T. Realmuto in the Third Round in 2010, and after four years in the minors, the Catcher made it to the main roster, playing 11 Games in 2014. The Marlins knew that Realmuto was the Catcher moving forward, and he took over behind the plate in 2015. Realmuto struggled as a rookie, with an OBP under .300, though his arm defensively was an asset. He was much better in 2016, batting .303 and hitting at least .277 the next two years. Realmuto's power numbers grew, belting 17 in 2017 with 21 in 2018. He went to his first All-Star Game in…
Ricky Nolasco might be one of the tenured Pitchers in Marlins history, though the fact that he was never a staff ace impacts his ranking, especially on a Top 50 list like this. Nolasco toiled in the Cubs minor league system for four years before being traded to the Marlins before the 2006 Season. In Miami, Nolasco immediately made the Marlins roster, going 11-11, despite an ERA near five. Injured for most of the 2007 Season, Nolasco was back and, over the next five years, was an intriguing Pitcher, winning far more games than he lost, though his ERA was bloated due…
Anibal Sanchez was in the Red Sox organization when he was traded to Miami as part of the deal that sent Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell to Beantown. Sanchez debuted in the Majors the following year, going 10-3, threw a no-hitter and had a 2.83 ERA. It was good enough for ninth place in Rookie of the Year voting. Sanchez was injured through much of 2007 and 2008, and when he did pitch, it was nothing like his rookie year. He was again injured through half of 2009, but his numbers were better than they had been, and it looked like a comeback…