Which Miami Marlins Breakout Star Was Most Surprising This Season?

This Miami Marlins season has been anything but normal. The Fish were well out of the playoff hunt at the end of May, eight games under .500, and felt like a wasted season. Then, they had the best June in baseball and were back in the hunt. All of a sudden, a historically bad losing streak took all the wind out of the sails, but this can still be a successful season.

The Marlins have relied on plenty of difference makers that no one would have expected last season. Let's dissect the biggest shockers of the year and crown the most surprising breakout player.

Liam Hicks

Offensively, Liam Hicks' resurgence came completely out of left field. The sophomore catcher was a middling hitter during his rookie campaign, but he has really turned it around this year. His six homers, 45 RBI, and .692 OPS last season were about what he was expected to produce moving forward, but he set a new ceiling.

He leads the team in homers and RBI, while posting an astonishing 1/1 B:K ratio. The incredible part is, he hasn't walked a ton either. He owns a 98th percentile strikeout and whiff rate, which has led him to much success this year. Whether or not he'll keep it moving into next season is yet to be determined, but he's certainly one of the best shockers on the team this year.

Max Meyer

The 2020 third-overall pick had a fantastic minor league career and is finally living up to his hype. Despite an injury hiccup that has threatened to derail his season, he's been ace-material all year. Although he's dealt with injuries throughout his career, he's set high benchmarks in every major statistical category.

He's also thrown 111 innings this year, which he'd only done twice since being drafted. He's always had a high ceiling, hence why he was drafted so high, but never lived up to the hype. His MLB ERA hovered above 5.00 over the last two seasons, but that's now a distant memory. Meyer can't be the most surprising bright spot this season, because his expectations were high, but he's certainly on the list, especially after his first All-Star game.

Otto Lopez

Otto Lopez is no shocker to win the most surprising standout Marlin player of the year so far. He leads all of MLB entering Friday night in hits, batting average, and doubles, and made the All-Star team. For a player that Miami claimed off waivers, this is a dream come true.

Lopez was discarded by the Toronto Blue Jays and San Francisco Giants despite just 10 career MLB at-bats. Ironically, he recorded six hits in those at-bats, which was a precursor to his breakout seasons ahead. He reset expectations after his .270 batting average, 20 stolen base rookie campaign in 2024, but he came back to earth last season.

As soon as expectations were low, Lopez struck and has been one of the best stories in baseball this season. He's clearly the most surprising breakout star on the team and has reset his expectations once again for the coming years.

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