MLB All-Star Game: Miami Marlins All-Time All-Star Outfield

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If you like power, you’re going to love the three finalists for the Miami Marlins All-Time All-Star outfield.

Spoiler alert. That clump of Miami Marlins pictured above is going to be pretty inclusive in terms of this article.

Hopefully by this point in the series, you’ve gotten the sense that this is a franchise that has never really wanted for star power. It’s just one that has usually wanted for having enough of it, in the right places and at the right time.

The 2004 and 2008 Marlins had enough pitching, but needed one more big bat. From 2014 onwards, it’s been one more elite pitcher. Sometimes it’s just been the lack of even an MLB average bench or bullpen. The team’s frequently limited finances have led to hamstringing attempts to contend.

But seldom has that All-Star talent been concentrated outside the infield.

The outfield is an interesting spot to study, because in terms of pure talent, the best unit the Miami Marlins have ever fielded is the one out there right now. Marcell Ozuna, Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich….not a Jeremy Hermida or Devon White among them.

All three would arguably be worth building a franchise around.

Rarely have the Marlins had more than one All-Star outfielder out there. But they’ve definitely had at least one on multiple occasions. Seven individuals, with five repeaters, to be precise.

Best units in terms of All-Star talent though? Pretty much bookended over a twenty year period, between that first championship club and today’s crew. You can certainly argue there have been some major omissions from Midsummer Classic honors , and we’ll take a look at those as well.

Without further ado though, your top three Miami Marlins All-Star outfielders, as well as the three best individual All-Star outfielding seasons. No particular order here, but let’s call it greatest to least. Counterarguments encouraged in the comments or on Twitter.

21 Oct 1997: Third Baseman Matt Williams of the Cleveland Indians (left) stands dejected with outfielder Gary Sheffield of the Florida Marlins rounding the bases during the third game of the World Series at Jacobs Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The Marlins won the game 14-11. Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /Allsport /

Marlins All-Time All-Star Outfielder No. 1: Gary Sheffield

This one was easy. Many Miami Marlins fans that have been there since the beginning will still tell you that Gary Sheffield is their favorite Marlin of all-time.

He’s on the Franchise Four, has spent more time patrolling the outfield as a starter than any other Marlin besides Stanton, and helped deliver Miami’s first World Championship.

Basically, he was our first baseball star. If you want to argue I should be talking about Jeff Conine here, I’d remind you he slowly and steadily earned that Mr. Marlin moniker. Sheffield arrived as an All-Star, and had already largely earned his second appearance when he came over from San Diego in 1993.

We gave up a future Hall of Famer to get him, and got back a Hall of Fame caliber player in return.

It might not have been the best trade in franchise history. But in hindsight, it was probably the most balanced.

Sheff still sits near the top on plenty of all-time lists for Miami, and if it wasn’t for the 1994 Strike, he would undoubtedly be positioned higher still. A fact Hall of Fame voters would do well to remember.

He did miss some time due to injury in those already shortened seasons as well, but it’s fun to wonder how many more home runs he would have hit had he had the opportunity.

In ASG action, he acquitted himself admirably as far as Marlins All-Stars go.

Best single season All-Star: 1996 Gary Sheffield

Twenty-one years ago, Gary Sheffield set a new Miami Marlins franchise record for home runs in a single season.

Twenty-one years later, Marlins fans are still waiting for someone to finally break it.

To be fair, 42 HRs is a daunting hurdle to overcome. Few players ever surpass it in their careers. Sheffield himself only beat it once, and he’s a 500 HR Club member. Curiously enough, if you add up his 1995 and 1997 totals, you’d find yourself five short of that crazy 1996 number.

Now, this could well be the season that streak of failed attempts finally ends. Giancarlo Stanton came oh so close in 2012 and 2014, really the only Marlin to ever mount a serious challenge. What makes 2017 unique is that three Marlins are mathematically alive to achieve the feat.

Even if another late season injury, or a late July trade, eliminates a contender, we’re still alive to see some history.

Until that happens, Sheffield’s 1996 remains the gold standard. And even if those 42 HRs are bested, the odds are pretty good his .314 BA and 120 RBIs will still hold up. When it comes to that kind of team Triple Crown dominance from the outfield, Miami Marlins fans have only ever seen it from No. 10 in your programs.

Marlins All-Time All-Star Outfielder No. 2: Moises Alou

When many of our younger Marlin Maniacs think of this guy, they probably think of a very different Miami Marlins playoff run than the one that got him on the list.

For it was Moises Alou that had a front row seat when Steve Bartman famously reached out and extended Luis Castillo’s at bat in Game 6 of the 2003 NLCS. That alone is probably worth an honorable mention- had Alou caught that ball, we’re probably a one championship club.

Really though, he earned it all with one of the finest single seasons ever produced by a Miami Marlins outfielder. In fact, he earned it in his only season here. When it comes to productive one-year rentals, only Ivan Rodriguez is Alou’s superior.

Unlike Rodriguez though, Alou was recognized for his All-Star efforts. Cracking 23 HRs might not have been a Marlins novelty, but those 115 RBI were the second highest total in team history to that point. And just like Rodriguez, it seemed that everyone of them was instrumental.

Jeff Conine might have been Mr. Marlin, but in 1997, Moises Alou was Mr. Clutch. So much so, he even finished 10th in the MVP voting that season.

Hey, sometimes something positive for the Marlins comes out of Montreal.

Alou as a Marlins All-Star

Obviously, his best single-season was his only Marlins season. So no need to gush further on 1997. So let’s talk All-Star Game.

As for his post-Marlins career, Alou is in no danger of being accused of submitting his best season as a Marlin. Over his next three campaigns, his “worst” season saw him bat .331 with 27 HRs and 108 RBIs. In fact, 1997 probably doesn’t make the list of his Top 5 seasons.

Except, of course, for the fact he won his one and only championship that year.

ST. LOUIS, MO – JULY 5: Giancarlo Stanton /

Marlins All-Time All-Star Outfielder No. 3: Giancarlo Stanton

Last but not least, we land on a contemporary member of the Miami Marlins.

Time to talk Giancarlo Stanton, the franchise’s all-time home run leader and a four time Marlins All-Star. If he survives this forthcoming trade deadline, he could end up going down as the greatest Marlin ever.

Could. Greatest All-Star outfielder though? That’s probably a lock if he ends up playing in over 140 games in 2017. Even without ever being part of a winning team, he’s simply too talented to overlook. Health and health alone has kept him from wrapping up that distinction years ago.

As a Marlin, the only club he has ever known, he’s already reached 238 HRs for his career. The guy is only 27 years old. That’s roughly 59 HRs ahead of Sheffield’s pace at that age. A terrific athlete as well, there’s little rush for Stanton to usher off to the American League. Much like Sheffield himself, he should be able to play the outfield well into his thirties.

Best Single Season All-Star : 2014/2017 Giancarlo Stanton

If Stanton plays out the 2017 season with the Miami Marlins, it’s going to be hard not to go with this one. The way he’s heated up, his home run total could flirt with 50. Barring a complete roster blowup, he should reach 100 RBIs for the second time in his career.

But until that happens, the answer is clearly 2014. Had he not seen his season ended by that terrifying fastball to the face, he very likely wins the NL MVP. Batting .288, with 37 HRs and 105 RBI, Stanton posted career highs in homers, RBIs, and OBP that year. That’s crazy good, and was good enough to keep Miami alive for October right up to the end of the season.

Next: All-Time All Ways At Third

Starting rotation is next up, with plenty of fine Miami Marlins arms to choose from.

Sadly, in what will probably be this season’s epitaph, none are members of the 2017 staff.

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