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Remy Podesto Under 
Tags: The Marlins franchise has become synonymous with its expert status in the field of developing fine, young talent and then trading it away to other teams in exchange for more youth. This strategy isn’t necessarily by choice, as poor ticket sales prevent the team from having the ability to sign big names.
Somehow, the Marlins have come away with two World Series championships in their 16 years of existence. Once in 1997, and again in 2003. Much of their success has resulted from great young pitching, and the following article will list the top five players to have ever pitched for the franchise.
5. Carl Pavano – You gotta love it when a guy who plays on a team for only two seasons can be considered one of the top pitchers in their team’s history. That’s right, Pavano played with the Marlins during the 2003-2004 seasons before bolting for a big contract with the Yankees. Unfortunately for the Yankees, he’s turned out to be a major bust, but his best season by far came just before he left. A career .500 pitcher with an ERA nearing 4.50, Pavano had an extremely good season in 2004, in which he went 18-8 with an ERA of 3.00 and a WHIP of 1.17. He also happened to hit 2 HR’s that year, if that means anything. Pavano finished his stint with the Marlins with a 33-23 record and a 3.64 ERA, which is good for 5th on the Marlins best pitchers of all-time.
4. A.J. Burnett – Burnett was actually a member of the Marlins for seven seasons, although a number of injuries makes his numbers a bit lower than you’d think. In his seven seasons, Burnett never won more than 12 games with the Marlins, and finished his career with the Marlins with a 49-50 record. Burnett’s best year came back in 2002, when he finished 12-9 with a 3.30 ERA. That year, he threw 204 innings and struck out 203 while only allowing 153 hits, finishing with a BAA of .209. Burnett has always had nasty stuff; unfortunately injuries have prevented him from making more starts and truly showing what he’s got.
3. Kevin Brown – Brown’s stint in Florida was pretty short-lived, but Kevin Brown was one of the best pitchers in baseball during his time as a Florida Marlin. In his first season as a Marlin, Brown had an incredible 1.89 earned run average and a WHIP below 1. His win-loss record that season (17-11) is misleading considering his exceptional ERA. His second season was a bit worse, but still stellar by all standards, as Brown had a 16-8 win loss record with a 2.69 ERA. Had Brown spent a few more seasons with the Marlins, he probably would have placed higher on this list.
2. Josh Beckett – Like Burnett, Beckett suffered a plethora of injuries during his five seasons with the Marlins that limited his production. In fact, Beckett never made 30+ starts in any single season. Beckett’s best single season came in 2005 when he went 15-8 with a 3.37 ERA. In his career as a Marlin, Beckett finished 41-34 with a 3.46 ERA, 607 strikeouts in 609 innings, and only 529 hits allowed. However, Beckett is probably most known for his dominating performance during the 2003 playoffs, in which he compiled a 2.11 ERA and helped knock off the heavily favored Yankees. He is considered to be the best playoff pitcher in Marlins history.
1. Dontrelle Willis – His career ERA as a Marlin (3.78) may be a bit higher than others on this list, but Dontrelle Willis has more wins than any Florida Marlins pitcher (68), and more starts as a Marlin (162). Additionally, Dontrelle Willis compiled a season that was just as good as (if not better than) any other pitcher to don a Marlins uniform, with a 22-10 record and a 2.63 ERA. Seasons like these are rare, and Willis finished second in Cy Young voting that season. To top it all off, Willis’s 8 home runs as a Marlin are more than any pitcher in the team’s history.
Not too far behind are current Marlins Josh Johnson and Ricky Nolasco. Johnson is having one of the best seasons in baseball, and Nolasco is finally looking like the Nolasco of last year after a slow start. Both could easily replace Pavano at #5 (if not more) with another good season.
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