Fixing MLB Network’s Awful Marlins Franchise Favorites Lineup
- Sheehan Planas-Arteaga
- 8 hours ago
- 8 min read
There are many good options for Marlins Franchise Favorites. Matt Vasgersian ignored most of those.
Pitchers and catchers report in a few weeks for MLB Spring Training. Apart from the big signing or trade here and there, it’s the slow season for baseball media. As such, MLB Network is pumping out “Franchise Favorites” graphics for all 30 teams. Basically, Harold Reynolds and Matt Vasgersian make a lineup and pitching staff of just the fan favorites of each team. Not necessarily the best, just the ones the franchise loves/loved the most.
Matt Vasgersian has been around baseball as a broadcaster for over 30 years. He’s not a dummy. This “Franchise Favorite” lineup he created for the Florida/Miami Marlins, though? This is one of the worst lists I’ve ever seen in my life. It’s one of the worst pieces of sports media I’ve ever seen in my life, period. If this is engagement or rage bait, well done, Mr. Vasgersian. His picks are below.
C Mike Piazza
1B Kevin Millar
2B Luis Castillo
SS Walt Weiss
3B Mike Lowell
LF Juan Pierre
CF Cliff Floyd
RF Mark Kotsay
DH Edgar Renteria
SP Al Leiter
SP Dontrelle Willis
SP Ryan Dempster
SP Jose Fernandez
RP Bryan Harvey
RP Chad Qualls
Here’s how dumb this is and what it should be:
C Mike Piazza
Mike Piazza might be a Hall of Famer and the greatest hitting catcher of all time, but not because of his stint in South Florida. Piazza spent a total of five (5) games in a Marlins uniform in 1998, hitting zero of his career 427 home runs in that time. He was traded to the Mets in May and never again played for the Fish. Talk about a fan favorite.
The true fan favorite is Charles Johnson, who played seven seasons with the Marlins across two stints, winning a World Series in 1997. He was also the franchise’s first-ever draft pick when he was selected 28th overall in the 1992 MLB Draft, out of the University of Miami. He will one day be in the Marlins Hall of Fame, and is still a very active part of the organization who can regularly be seen at home games throughout the season.
Pudge Rodriguez was also a favorite, but he played just one season down here. J.T. Realmuto is perhaps the best catcher to have ever played for the Marlins, but, fair or not, he wasn’t one who you’d consider a fan favorite, even though there was nothing offensive about him. Just not a lot of personality and not on many good teams, perhaps. You have to give the edge to CJ.
1B Kevin Millar
Wrong again. You could make the argument Millar is the fan favorite 1B for the Red Sox, but not the Marlins (though he was certainly liked).
Picking the right option here is trickier. 1B hasn’t exactly been a strength of this team in their 32 years of existence. The right answer is probably Derrek Lee, who is also the best player of the bunch and helped win a World Series in 2003. Justin Bour was not on Lee’s level as a player, but the gusto he displayed, particularly in the 2017 Home Run Derby in what was then Marlins Park, made him a favorite as well. Advantage Lee, however.
2B Luis Castillo
The correct answer. A Marlins Hall of Famer and the franchise leader in dozens of stats, Castillo is an all-time Marlin.
Dee Gordon, Jazz Chisholm, Luis Arraez, and Dan Uggla were all excellent players who played with their own unique flair, but there’s just too much history behind Castillo, who was part of both World Series championships. Matt Vasgersian didn’t mess this one up.
SS Walt Weiss
We’re back to being dumb. Walt Weiss? He of the one season and .675 OPS? Granted, it was the inaugural 1993 season, so fans were eager to latch onto any player wearing teal. But several shortstops have surpassed Weiss in the hearts of fans.
Hanley Ramirez is easily the best shortstop the Marlins have ever had, but he wasn’t a fan favorite due to a propensity to not hustle and shoddy defense. This play encapsulates these issues. Miguel Rojas was at one point a fan favorite, but the revelations about his treatment of a young Jazz Chisholm have damaged his reputation in South Florida. That leaves us with Alex Gonzalez, Adeiny Hechavarria, and Edgar Renteria as the three viable picks. You have to give it to Renteria. A World Series-winning hit will make people like you quite a bit.
3B Mike Lowell
Bingo. A hometown hero (Coral Gables High School, then FIU), Lowell gave us nothing but steady excellence for seven seasons. Miguel Cabrera took over at the third after Lowell was traded to the Red Sox in 06 (where he would also become a fan favorite), but Miggy played a lot of outfield in Miami. Lowell was synonymous with the hot corner and will soon be a Marlins Hall of Famer.
LF Juan Pierre
Juan Pierre played zero games in left field in his first stint in Miami, when he was a key piece of the 2003 World Series-winning team. He played 64 games in his second stint with the Marlins, during his final season. He does not belong in left field.
Jeff “Mr. Marlin” Conine is the answer. He was an inaugural Marlins Hall of Fame member, he was part of both World Series titles, he made the throw (from left field) to cut down J.T. Snow at the plate in the 2003 NLDS, after Pudge held onto the ball. Niner is your Marlins left fielder forever and ever. Save your Yeliches and your Alous and your Floyds.
CF Cliff Floyd
Speaking of Floyds, Matt Vasgersian dropped Cliff Floyd into center. Floyd played 11 games in center field in his six seasons with the Fish, compared to 502 in left. Nice one, Matt.
This is where Juan Pierre belongs. Marcell Ozuna did well with fans here (before he was "Ozuna from the Braves"), and Preston Wilson, Chuck Carr, and Devon White all had their moments. But their fan appreciation paled in comparison to the unbreakable speedster that was Juan Pierre.
RF Mark Kotsay
I love the pick only because Mark Kotsay was my first favorite player. I just thought he was a bad ass hitter and he wore cool shades and had a cannon from right. But that doesn’t make the pick any less wrong.
The right answer is tough. It is clearly between Gary Sheffield and Giancarlo Stanton, two of the best players to ever put on a Marlins uniform. Sheffield has the ‘97 World Series in his favor, while Stanton has the 2017 MVP (the only one in franchise history) in his. Sheffield also dominated in the 97 playoffs, hitting .320/.521/.540 across 16 games. Stanton never got a chance in the playoffs, though him winning the 2016 Home Run Derby was pretty sweet. Both players played with a quiet intensity.
I’m giving the slight edge to Stanton because of the star power he commanded in Miami, which no other position player has done while they were here.
DH Edgar Renteria
I guess Matt Vasgersian took some liberties with the DH spot by putting just anyone there. The position has existed in the National League since 2022; Jorge Soler is the best one the Marlins have had so far. Renteria, even if the DH spot was available during his time, would never have left shortstop.
I’ll play the same game here and put someone who would have been a DH had it existed in the National League at the time: Miguel Cabrera. Miggy could tear the cover off the ball from the word go, but was not exactly a plus defender. He was adored in South Florida as soon as he showed up as a baby-faced 20-year-old in 2003. Staring down Roger Clemens after getting some chin music, then taking him deep in the World Series? We loved this kid. Him getting traded to the Tigers still hurts.
SP (x4) Al Leiter, Dontrelle Willis, Ryan Dempster, Jose Fernandez
Two of these are slam dunks: The D-Train and Jose. Both pitched with a flair people had rarely, or never, seen before, and both had dominant streaks with the Fish.
Ryan Dempster? Matt Vasgersian pulled that one out of his ass. There’s an argument to be made for Al Leiter, but two years with the organization might not be enough to put him over a Livan Hernandez, who spent four seasons here and won both NLCS and World Series MVP in 1997. And he was Cuban? And he roared “I love you, Miami” as he hoisted the MVP trophy over his head? Livan is a fan favorite forever.
Now it gets really difficult. Do I go with World Series hero Josh Beckett? Do I go with Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara? Kevin Brown? Josh Johnson? All four deserve consideration, but I’m giving the edge to Sandy due to longevity. Beckett, if you remember, was not a fan favorite before the 2003 playoffs, largely due to recurring injuries that repeatedly hampered his progress (no human being ever got more blisters than Josh Beckett). Kevin Brown was masterful in his time with the Fish, but like Leiter, only spent two seasons here. Johnson had the longevity of Sandy (eight seasons), but his injury issues made him even more frustrating than Beckett.
Sandy has given us everything he’s had to this point, as one of the few workhorses left in the Major Leagues. Here’s hoping he gets as many chances for playoff glory as Beckett, Brown, Leiter, Livan, etc.
RP (x2) Bryan Harvey, Chad Qualls
Just nonsense. Utter nonsense. Bryan Harvey was the closer during the inaugural 1993 season, and to his credit, he was lights out (1.7 ERA, 252 ERA+, 45 saves). But that was it. Injuries derailed his career and he pitched in 13 more games across ‘94 and ‘95 and never pitched in the Majors after that.
Chad Qualls? C’mon, guy. Qualls was a bright spot in a 100-loss 2013 season, putting up a 2.61 ERA in 66 appearances, most of them in the 8th inning. That was his only season with the Marlins. His most notable moment, sadly, is probably him busting his ass after an inning-ending strikeout.
Robb Nen, who played five seasons with the Marlins and still holds the franchise record for saves, belongs in one of these spots. He locked down four games in the 1997 playoffs and threw straight cheese every time he came in the game.
There are four options for multi-year guys who filled the closer role, namely A.J. Ramos, Kevin Gregg, Steve Cishek, and Antonio Alfonseca. You can also go with one-year wonders, like the aforementioned Harvey, Todd Jones, Armando Benitez, Ugueth Urbina, and Joe Borowski. I’m going with El Pulpo, though.
Alfonseca was a rookie in ‘97 and threw 6.1 scoreless innings in the playoffs, before racking up 102 saves across the next four seasons. Known for the extra digits on his hands, hence the nickname “Pulpo” (octopus in Spanish), and his bombastic presence on the mound, fans will always have a soft spot in their hearts for Alfonseca, especially since he still makes plenty of appearances at LoanDepot Park.
Utility Guy
There wasn’t a utility spot in Matt Vasgersian’s lineup, but I’m adding one to mine in order to give Alfredo Amezaga some love. Amezaga played games at every position on the field except pitcher and catcher in both 2006 and 2007. He was the epitome of a high-energy glue guy who was willing to do anything and everything to contribute. That’ll make you a fan favorite.
Without further ado, here’s how the Marlins Franchise Favorite lineup should have looked:
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