Marlins' Otto Lopez Breakout Season is Getting Its Deserved Recognition
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For the second straight year under manager Clayton McCullough, the Miami Marlins were a team that fought into September to hang around in the National League wild-card race, only to fall short when the dust settled.
It was a little surprising that they hung around as long as they did after offseason moves that saw the president of baseball operations, Peter Bendix, trade two starting pitchers, Edward Cabrera and Ryan Weathers, to the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees, respectively.
However, despite fading down the stretch, the Marlins finished just two games below .500 and had some young players step up and make big impacts. One of those players was shortstop Otto Lopez, who proved that he is a foundation piece for Miami to build around rather than trading.
Otto Lopez Named Marlins' Biggest Surprise in 2026
Rumors were flying around at the trade deadline surrounding Lopez, but in the end, he wasn't traded after Bendix put a high asking price on his rising star. In the end, keeping him was the right decision after the season he had offensively.
How big of a breakout season did Lopez have? In 157 games in 2026, the 28-year-old slashed .305/.349/.437 with 11 home runs and 71 RBIs. He had a career high in hits with 191, doubles with 32 and triples with nine. He was an NL All-Star this summer for the first time and likely not the last. Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report listed each MLB team's biggest surprise and disappointment and it shouldn't be surprising that Lopez was Miami's biggest surprise.
"A breakout offensive season alongside his usual standout defense made Lopez one of the most valuable shortstops in baseball, with his 6.1 WAR behind only Kevin McGonigle (7.1) and Bobby Witt Jr. (6.7) at the position. After hitting .246/.305/.368 a year ago, he was the NL hits leader (191) and a contender for the NL batting title into the final month,'' wrote Reuter.
Having the third-best WAR in MLB at the shortstop position, just behind Kevin McGonigle of the Detroit Tigers and Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals, it is certainly some company for Lopez to join.
As far as looking ahead, there was a reason that Bendix would put a high asking price for Lopez in a potential trade. There is room for improvement and if he can take another step in 2027, then the Marlins will have arguably one of the top shortstops in the National League. Miami fans might not want to hear it, but players like Lopez are ones to build around and build quickly.
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