Giancarlo Stanton Has Plenty of Help in MLB's Best Outfield Trio

Giancarlo Stanton is the face of the Miami Marlins, the superstar, the MVP candidate, the $325 million man. But as special as the 25-year-old slugger is, he is only part of what just might be the best outfield in Major League Baseball.

Although they're not quite as productive as Stanton—and certainly nowhere near as well known—teammates Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna are pretty great running mates in the campaign for the top outfield around.

At 6'3" and 200 pounds, the 23-year-old Yelich, is a tall, sinewy player who possesses promising pop, plenty of speed and all sorts of grace in left field.

In 2014—his first full season in the majors—the lefty-swinging Yelich batted .284/.362/.402 with 94 runs, 45 extra-base hits (nine homers) and 21 steals. He also played superb defense, which earned him a Gold Glove.

Ozuna, 24, checks in at 6'1" and 230 pounds, the most compactly built of the three, which provides the power that is both his biggest tool and a rarity among center fielders these days.

Last year also was Ozuna's first as a full-time big leaguer, and the righty slugger triple-slashed .269/.317/.455 with 23 home runs among his 54 extra-base knocks and 85 RBI while capably covering center.

Like Stanton, both Yelich and Ozuna were big-time prospects not long ago, the former ranking No. 15 on Baseball America's top 100, the latter at No. 75 in February of 2013.

Also like Stanton, both Yelich and Ozuna remain in the nascent stages of their careers, their primes still very much ahead of them.

And yet, they already have proved quite a lot and produced some impressive performances in a short time together.

In fact, thanks to Stanton, Yelich and Ozuna, the Marlins were the only club to have three full-time outfielders rank among the top 25 at the position in wins above replacement (WAR), according to FanGraphs.

PLAYER	2014 fWAR	OF RANK
Giancarlo Stanton	6.1	6th
Christian Yelich	4.3	15th
Marcell Ozuna	3.7	21st

Sure, other clubs feature players who could vie for the title of best outfield in MLB.

Take the Pittsburgh Pirates, who come close to matching the Marlins in terms of potential with Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco. Similar to Miami's outfield, Pittsburgh's consists of one superstar and a pair of promising up-and-comers.

Or the Milwaukee Brewers, with all-around stud Carlos Gomez, former MVP Ryan Braun and hard-hitting Khris Davis.

Or like the San Diego Padres' brand new threesome of Matt Kemp, Justin Upton and Wil Myers, all of whom can bring it in the batter's box but might not be up to snuff defensively.

There's also the Washington Nationals (Bryce Harper, Jayson Werth, Denard Span), the Colorado Rockies (Carlos Gonzalez, Corey Dickerson, Charlie Blackmon) and the Boston Red Sox (Hanley Ramirez, Rusney Castillo, Shane Victorino and/or Mookie Betts). Depending on various breakouts, transitions and injuries, any of those could give Miami's bunch a run for its money.

And don't forget the Kansas City Royals, who made it all the way to the playoffs and even the World Series last year in large part because of the incredible play of Alex Gordon and Lorenzo Cain, especially on defense.

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

But the Marlins' trio of Stanton, Yelich and Ozuna, whom ESPN.com's Buster Olney picked as MLB's best outfield in January, is unmatched in terms of age, upside and varying skill sets.

Even more impressive? Not one of these three spent a day at Triple-A before making their major league debuts, meaning they should be getting even better since they essentially have been learning on the job at the highest level.

"Quite honestly, I don't think there is another group of outfielders I'd take over our three," Marlins general manager Dan Jennings said late last season, via Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. "When you look at those guys offensively, I think their numbers speak for themselves."

The Fish had a busy offseason, remaking their roster by trading for solid midrotation righty Mat Latos, steady veteran Martin Prado to play third base and speedy second baseman and leadoff hitter Dee Gordon.

But if the Marlins are going to make a push for the postseason in 2015 after hanging around throughout much of last summer before fading late—around the time Stanton's season ended upon his being hit in the face by a fastball that caused facial fractures and dental damage—you better believe the outfield will be the driving force.

They'll be forced to shoulder even more of the load with ace right-hander Jose Fernandez, one of the game's most electric arms, out until midseason while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Good thing, then, that Stanton (6.0 WAR), Yelich (3.2 WAR) and Ozuna (3.2 WAR) are projected to be among the best outfielders again in 2015, according to Steamer projections—making the Marlins the only team with three in the top 20 in WAR.

Stanton is still the big man on campus in Miami, but it takes Yelich and Ozuna—two pretty great players in their own right—to complete MLB's best outfield.

Statistics are accurate through Wednesday, March 11 and courtesy of MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.

To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11