The best MLB rosters of all time (Part 2/5)

In order to put together an all-time great roster, a Major League Baseball team can’t lean on one or two great players. The Seattle Mariners have had some great performances from players like Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jr., and Randy Johnson. You know what they haven’t had? Sustained success. The team has never had a great catcher season, never had a great left fielder season. And that’s why the Mariners are in today’s entry.

To recap (read Monday’s post!), this week I’m trying to find the best roster in MLB history built by each franchise’s best single-season performances (all by Baseball-Reference WAR, which yes, is not a perfect measure, but is far easier than anything else and it’s not like I’m gunning for a Nobel here). As we saw in Monday’s piece, with the bottom six teams, this thing has an unsurprising bias toward teams with long histories, just to give them longer to accumulate big seasons.

Today shows that as well. MLB teams can be pretty neatly divided into two categories—teams that were around in 1901 and teams that came into existence after 1962. All six of Monday’s teams fall into the expansion era (four of the six came into existence in the 1990s). All six of today’s teams also fall into the expansion era. The two remaining teams (the Angels and Mets) pop up tomorrow.

In other words: History matters a lot here.

Here are teams 19-24:

24. Washington Nationals (cumulative WAR: 111.8)

C: Gary Carter 1982, 8.6
1B: Andres Galarraga 1988, 5.7
2B: Jose Vidro 2002, 5.4
3B: Ryan Zimmerman 2009, 7.3
SS: Hubie Brooks 1986, 4.7
LF: Tim Raines 1985, 7.6
CF: Andre Dawson 1982, 7.9
RF: Bryce Harper 2015, 9.7
DH: Gary Carter 1984/Andre Dawson 1981, 7.5
SP1: Pedro Martinez 1997, 9.0
SP2: Max Scherzer 2018, 8.4
SP3: Steve Rogers 1982, 7.7
SP4: Max Scherzer 2017, 7.2
SP5: Max Scherzer 2015, 6.9
RP1: John Wetteland 1993, 4.2
RP2: Mike Marshall 1972, 4.0

The Expos’/Nationals’ history of infielders is not exactly blowing people away; the cumulative 23.1 WAR from the four infield positions is worse than any team but the Marlins’. Carter, Harper, and some pitchers buoy the overall numbers, but this is a team with Vidro, Brooks, and pre-star Galarraga making unimpressive appearances. The Scherzer tenure in Washington has been something, though.

23. Milwaukee Brewers (cumulative WAR: 113.9)

C: Jonathan Lucroy 2014, 6.4
1B: Cecil Cooper 1980, 6.8
2B: Paul Molitor 1979, 5.6
3B: Tommy Harper 1970, 7.4
SS: Robin Yount 1982, 10.5
LF: Ryan Braun 2011, 7.7
CF: Carlos Gomez 2013, 7.6
RF: Christian Yelich 2018, 7.3
DH: Robin Yount 1983, 7.3
SP1: Teddy Higuera 1986, 9.4
SP2: Mike Caldwell 1978, 8.2
SP3: Teddy Higuera 1988, 7.4
SP4: Ben Sheets 2004, 7.2
SP5: Teddy Higuera 1987, 6.3
RP1: Ken Sanders 1970, 4.6
RP2: Rollie Fingers 1981, 4.2

Higuera didn’t make it to the major leagues until he was 27. In his first three years, he had a second-place Rookie of the Year finish, a second- and a sixth-place Cy Young finish, a 15th-place MVP finish, and an All-Star appearance. Over his first four years, he totaled 26.2 WAR. Injuries in 1991 at age 33 more or less ruined his career, but he had at least 2.5 WAR in each of his first six seasons. They invented the phrase “hot and bright” for Teddy Higuera. Meanwhile, the Brewers have packed most of the franchise history top performances into the ‘80s (unlike most teams), except for the outfield, where all three appearances came in the 2010s. The Brewers only have one of the 16 players here (Sheets in 2004) between 1988 and 2011. That was a real fallow period in Milwaukee.

22. Toronto Blue Jays (cumulative WAR: 114.3)

C: Gregg Zaun 2005, 3.6
1B: John Olerud 1993, 7.8
2B: Roberto Alomar 1992, 6.6
3B: Josh Donaldson 2016, 7.2
SS: Marco Scutaro 2009, 5.4
LF: Shannon Stewart 2000/George Bell 1987, 5.0
CF: Lloyd Moseby 1984, 7.3
RF: Jose Bautista 2011, 8.3
DH: Jesse Barfield 1986, 7.6
SP1: Roger Clemens 1997, 11.9
SP2: Pat Hentgen 1996, 8.6
SP3: Roger Clemens 1998, 8.1
SP4: Roy Halladay 2003, 8.1
SP5: Dave Stieb 1984, 7.9
RP1: Mark Eichhorn 1986, 7.3
RP2: B.J. Ryan 2006, 3.6

Only Toby Hall’s appearance on the Rays’ all-time team keeps Zaun from being comfortably the most surprising name in this whole series. Gregg Zaun? Sixteen years in the league, 91 career OPS+, 13.7 career WAR Gregg Zaun? Yep. 2005 was both Zaun’s best year by offensive WAR (2.3) and by defensive WAR (2.2) — his baserunning brought his overall number down—and with the Blue Jays having a fairly modest history of catchers (only Zaun, Russell Martin, and Ernie Whitt — one apiece — have even reached 3 WAR for the Blue Jays), Zaun cracks the roster. On the pitching side, Clemens pitched two years in Toronto and managed 20.1 WAR. He pitched six in New York and had 21.2. His tenure in Canada was brief but freaking spectacular. And then there’s Hentgen, who managed 25.0 of his 33.0 career WAR in 1993-1997, with a Cy Young and three All-Star appearances, and then was average-to-bad the rest of his career.

21. Seattle Mariners (cumulative WAR: 114.6)

C: Dan Wilson 1997, 3.8
1B: Alvin Davis 1984, 6.0
2B: Bret Boone 2001, 8.8
3B: Kyle Seager 2016, 6.7
SS: Alex Rodriguez 2000, 10.4
LF: Phil Bradley 1985, 4.8
CF: Ken Griffey Jr. 1996, 9.7
RF: Ichiro Suzuki 2004, 9.2
DH: Alex Rodriguez 1996, 9.4
SP1: Randy Johnson 1995, 8.6
SP2: Randy Johnson 1997, 8.0
SP3: Felix Hernandez 2010, 7.2
SP4: Hisashi Iwakuma 2013, 7.0
SP5: Randy Johnson 1993, 6.6
RP1: Bill Caudill 1982, 4.4
RP2: J.J. Putz 2007, 4.0

The Mariners have never had a left fielder reach 5.0 WAR in a season; the Blue Jays are the only other team without at least 6.5 at that position. For all the Griffey/Ichiro/Jay Buhner/etc. goodness at other positions, the Mariners have made a history of bringing in theoretical sluggers who have no glove at all and throwing them in left field and hoping for the best. The best has, uh, failed to happen. The team also has among the worst numbers at catcher, third base, and reliever. But man, the Rodriguez/Griffey/Johnson days were something. (And hi, Iwakuma, your ridiculous 2013 will be one of the most underrated seasons of all time.)

20. Houston Astros (cumulative WAR: 115.1)

C: Joe Ferguson 1977, 4.7
1B: Jeff Bagwell 1994, 8.2
2B: Craig Biggio 1997, 9.4
3B: Alex Bregman 2019, 9.1
SS: Dickie Thon 1983, 7.4
LF: Lance Berkman 2001, 6.5
CF: Cesar Cedeno 1972, 8.0
RF: Terry Puhl 1980, 6.2
DH: Jose Altuve 2016, 7.9
SP1: Larry Dierker 1979, 8.7
SP2: Mike Scott 1986, 8.4
SP3: Roger Clemens 2005, 7.8
SP4: Justin Verlander 2019, 7.4
SP5: Turk Farrell 1962/Roy Oswalt 2002, 7.0
RP1: Hal Woodeshick 1963, 4.6
RP2: Billy Wagner 1999/Brad Lidge 2004, 3.8

The Astros are one of seven teams with no repeaters at any of the starting pitching slots, a testament to the team’s ability to acquire starting pitching over the years — of the six starters listed there (counting the tie at SP5), only Dierker and Oswalt started their careers in Houston. Acquiring pitchers who are already good and having them stay good is an excellent way to have SP success on a shorter-term basis, and while I wouldn’t advise it as a long-term strategy, it has worked like gangbuster for the Astros. On offense, the Astros mix some huge names (basically all the B guys plus Cedeno) with some names you wouldn’t have expected (Ferguson and Puhl, mostly). And I like that Wagner and Lidge tie, because while Wagner’s career was obviously better, in a lot of ways those two were mirror images of one another.

19. Kansas City Royals (cumulative WAR: 118.2)

C: Darrell Porter 1979, 7.6
1B: John Mayberry 1975, 7.2
2B: Jose Offerman 1998, 5.3
3B: George Brett 1980, 9.4
SS: Freddie Patek 1971, 4.0
LF: Willie Wilson 1980, 8.5
CF: Amos Otis 1978, 7.4
RF: Jermaine Dye 1999, 4.7
DH: George Brett 1979, 8.6
SP1: Zack Greinke 2009, 10.4
SP2: Bret Saberhagen 1989, 9.7
SP3: Kevin Appier 1993, 9.4
SP4: Kevin Appier 1992, 8.0
SP5: Bret Saberhagen 1987, 8.0
RP1: Dan Quisenberry 1983, 5.5
RP2: Jeff Montgomery 1989, 4.6

Yes, the Royals have that 2015 World Series title, but the team hasn’t exactly loaded up on big individual performances in recent years. Of the 14 expansion-era teams, the ones not named the Royals have averaged 8.6 players on their all-time rosters from the 2000s, while Kansas City has only that one Greinke year. Only the Royals and Padres have fewer than five 2000s-era entrants. Some of the best Royals teams were the World Series competitors of the 2010s, but the best individual seasons in Kansas City history were almost entirely from the 1990s and before.