Righty reliever Bryan Harvey closed out a lot of wins for the Marlins in 1993.  He pitched in 59 games (0 starts) for the Marlins in 1993 and he was 1-5 with 45 saves, a 1.70 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP.  He gave up 45 hits and walked 13 batters while whiffing 73 of them in 69 very impressive innings in 1993.  Harvey was a N.L. All-Star in 1993.  He also finished 8th in the voting for the Cy Young Award and 14th in the MVP voting in the N.L.  But, Harvey hurt his elbow in 1994 and it cut his career short.  Harvey pitched in 72 games (0 starts) in his three years with the Marlins and he was 1-5 with 51 saves, a 2.50 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP.  Harvey is still #5 in saves in Marlins’ history with 51 of them.

Righty swinging outfielder Moises Alou only played one year with the Marlins, but it was one to remember as they won the World Series over the Cleveland Indians.  Alou played in 150 games for the Marlins in 1997 and he was 157 of 538 (.292 avg, .866 OPS) with 88 runs scored, 23 homers, 115 RBIs and 9 stolen bases.  He was an N.L. All-Star in 1997 and he finished 10th in the voting for the N.L. MVP.  Alou saved his best for last as he was outstanding in the 1997 World Series.  He played in 7 games for the Marlins in the 1997 World Series and he was 9 for 28 (.321 avg, 1.101 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 3 homers, 9 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  Marlins’ owner Wayne Huizenga then had a gigantic fire sale in the winter of 1997 and Alou was dealt to the Houston Astros for righty pitchers Manuel Barrios, Oscar Henriquez and Mark Johnson.  Barrios pitched in 2 games (0 starts) in 1998 for the Marlins and he was 0-0 with a 3.38 ERA and a 2.25 WHIP.  Henriquez pitched in 15 games (0 starts) for the Marlins in 1998 and he was 0-0 with a 8.55 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP.  Barrios and Henriquez never pitched for the Marlins after 1998 and Johnson never made it to the mound in Miami for the Marlins.  Moises Alou went on to play 10 more years in the majors after leaving the Marlins, appearing in 1,182 games in which he was 1,350 of 4,350 (.310 avg) with 678 runs scored, 225 homers, 799 RBIs and 44 stolen bases.  Alou was only with the Marlins for a very, very short time, but he made his mark in team history.

Righty swinging 3B Mike Lowell is probably the best 3B in Miami/Florida Marlins’ history. He played in 981 games in his seven years with the Marlins and he was 965 of 3,554 (.272 avg, .801 OPS) with 477 runs scored, 143 homers, 578 RBIs and 21 stolen bases. His best year for the Marlins came back in 2003 when the won the World Series. He played in 130 games in 2003 for the Marlins and he was 136 of 492 (.276 avg, .881 OPS) with 76 runs scored, 32 homers, 105 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Lowell made it to 3 All-Star Games and he won a Silver Slugger Award and a Gold Glove. Lowell is still the Marlins’ all-time leader in both doubles (243) and RBIs (578). He is also #3 in games played (981), #4 in hits (965), #4 in runs scored (477), #3 in homers (143) and #7 in walks (354) in Marlins’ history.

30-year old lefty starting pitcher Dontrelle Willis had his best seasons in the sun with the Florida Marlins. The D-Train burst onto the scene in 2003, when he won the Rookie of the Year Award in the N.L. Willis pitched in 27 games (all starts) for the Marlins in 2003 and he was 14-6 with a 3.30 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Willis’ best season came in 2005, when he finished 2nd in the N.L. Cy Young Award Voting. Willis pitched in 34 games (all starts) for the Marlins in 2005 and he was 22-10 with a 2.63 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. Willis pitched in 162 games (all starts) in his five years with the Marlins and he was 68-54 with a 3.78 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Willis is still all over the Marlins’ record books. He is the Marlins’ all-time leader in games started (162), innings pitched (1,022 2/3), complete games (15) and he’s tied with A.J. Burnett for the most shutouts (8) in team history. Willis is also #2 in wins (68), #5 in ERA (3.78), #7 in WHIP (1.36) and #2 in strikeouts (757) in Marlins’ history. Willis has been awful since being traded to the Tigers along with Miguel Cabrera for a bag of junk. Willis has pitched in 43 games (40 starts) in his four years in the majors after leaving the Marlins and he is 4-15 with a 6.15 ERA and a 1.81 WHIP.

Righty swinging CF Preston Wilson was an all or nothing hitter pretty much his whole career, but in 2000, he had a season to cherish. Wilson played in 161 games for the Marlins in 2000 and he was 160 of 605 (.264 avg, .817 OPS) with 94 runs scored, 31 homers, 121 RBIs and 36 stolen bases. His 121 RBIs still stands as a Marlins’ record for the most RBIs in one year. Wilson also whiffed a major league leading 187 times in 2000. Wilson played in 588 games in his five years with the Marlins and he was 549 for 2,096 (.262 avg, .806 OPS) with 315 runs scored, 104 homers, 329 RBIs and 87 stolen bases. Wilson was a 30/30 man in 2000 and he had two other years of being a 20/20 man. Wilson is #9 in homers (104), #10 in RBIs (329) and #7 in stolen bases (87) in Miami/Florida Marlins’ history. Wilson wasn’t with the Marlins long, but he made his mark.

Switch-hitting CF Chuck Carr burst onto the scene in the Marlins’ first year of existence. He finished 4th in the Rookie of the Year Voting in the N.L. in 1993, when the Marlins were born. Carr played in 142 games for the Marlins in 1993 and he was 147 for 551 (.267 avg, .657 OPS) with 75 runs scored, 4 homers, 41 RBIs and 58 stolen bases. He was also caught stealing 22 times, so he was far from perfect. Carr only played 3 years with the Marlins appearing in 353 games in which he was 331 of 1,292 (.256 avg, .646 OPS) with 190 runs scored, 8 homers, 91 RBIs and 115 stolen bases. Despite only playing three years with the Marlins, Carr is still #4 in team history in stolen bases with 115.

Righty reliever Antonio Alfonseca is more known for having six fingers on each hand than his pitching performance. That being said, he’s still hanging in there in the Marlins’ record books. He pitched in 68 games (0 starts) for the Marlins in 2000 and he was 5-6 with 45 saves, a 4.24 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. Alfonseca’s 45 saves led the majors in 2000, despite the fact that he gave up 82 hits in only 70 innings pitched! Alfonseca pitched in 307 games (0 starts) in his six years with the Marlins and he was 19-25 with 102 saves, a 3.86 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. Alfonseca is #2 in both saves (102) and games pitched (307) in Marlins’ history and that’s amazing to me, because I don’t think he was that good.

Righty reliever Rob Nenn was the closer for the first Florida Marlins’ World Series Championship in 1997. But, his best year was in 1996 for the Marlins when he pitched in 75 games (0 starts) in which he was 5-1 with 35 saves, a 1.95 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. Nen only gave up 67 hits in 83 innings in 1996 while whiffing 92 batters, which shows just how dominating he was. Nen pitched in 269 games (1 start) in his five years with the Marlins and he was 20-16 with 108 saves, a 3.41 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Nen is the Marlins’ all-time leader in franchise history in saves with 108 and he’s #4 in games pitched (269).

2B Luis Castillo played 10 years with the Florida Marlins and he’s all over the franchise record books. He played in 1,128 games for the Marlins and he was 1,273 for 4,347 (.293 avg, .726 OPS) with 675 runs scored, 20 homers, 271 RBIs and 281 stolen bases. Castillo was at his best in 2000 for the Marlins. That year he played in 136 games in which he was 180 of 539 (.334 avg, .806 OPS) with 101 runs scored, 2 homers, 17 RBIs and 62 stolen bases. Castillo played in three All-Star Games for the Marlins and he won 3 Gold Gloves in his time with the team. Castillo is the all-time leader in games played for the Marlins with 1,128. He is also #1 in runs scored (675), #1 in hits (1,273), #9 in doubles (130), #1 in triples (42), #1 in walks (533) and he’s #1 in stolen bases (281) in Marlins’ history. Current shortstop Hanley Ramirez will likely bump Castillo from the top perch in a number of categories down the road but that won’t tarnish the success the little 2B had with the Marlins.

Righty swinging OF/1B Jeff Conine was drafted by the Marlins in the expansion draft and he quickly became a fan favorite because of how he played the game. He then went away for a while but in 2003 Mike Lowell broke his hand getting hit by a pitch and the Marlins swung a trade with the Orioles to bring Conine back to South Florida. Conine played in 25 games that September for the Marlins and he was 20 of 84 (.238 avg, .789 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 5 homers and 15 RBIs. Conine will always be remembered for throwing out J.T. Snow at the plate in the top of the ninth inning to end the Marlins’ first round series with the Giants and the rest is history as they went on to win the World Series that year. Conine played in parts of 8 years for the Marlins appearing in 1,014 games in which he was 1,005 of 3,471 (.290 avg, .813 OPS) with 447 runs scored, 120 homers, 553 RBIs and 15 stolen bases. Conine is #2 in games played in Marlins’ history with 1,014. He is also #2 in hits (1,005), #7 in batting average (.290), #9 in OPS (.813), #5 in runs scored (447), #6 in homers (120), #2 in RBIs (553), #5 in doubles (180), tied for 7th in triples with Alfredo Amezaga (17) and he’s #3 in walks with 376. Conine made 2 All-Star teams with the Marlins and he still works for them to this day.