MLB: All-Time Olympic Team of Major Leaguers

Outfielders are not exactly a high-end group, though, I’m glad things worked out the way did because I can highlight a player I truly believe is underappreciated.

Left Field
Before I get to that player, I’ll start with one of the most versatile players of my lifetime and the consummate team player, so a perfect fit for an Olympic program, B.J. Surhoff. Surhoff was a catcher on the 1984 team, but he played the most at outfield of any position in the big leagues. In the major leagues, he played over 100 games each at catcher, first base, third base, and outfield (and designated hitter as well, for good measure). Surhoff totaled a .282/.332/.413 line over his 19 years in the major leagues, collecting 2,326 hits.

Center Field
While his major league career may have been less than “stand out”, 1996’s Mark Kotsay did put together a 17-year major league career in which he hit .276/.332/.404 and collected 1,784 hits. He was known for his impressive outfield defense. This is probably the position with the only competition in the outfield as 2008’s Dexter Fowler and another member of the 1984 team, Oddibe McDowell, were both guys who I really like in the center field position.

Right Field
Now I can come to my favorite player that popped up on this list. Growing up in the upper midwest, I got to see a lot of Shane Mack with the Minnesota Twins. Kirby Puckett was the known superstar, but watching the team, it wasn’t hard to pick out who was the most talented player on the field in any given Twins game – it was Mack, and it wasn’t really close. Mack was part of the 1984 team, and he worked his way to the major leagues initially with the Padres before being selected in the rule V draft by the Twins. Mack was a 20/20 threat each season, though he never achieved both in the same season. He was also an elite defender in the outfield with an incredible arm.

Over his career, Mack hit .299/.364/.456 with a 121 OPS+, but he tallied only 80 home runs and 90 steals in his short 9-year career. What happened, you may ask? Well, right in the peak of his career, the 1994 strike happened, and instead of waiting for a resolution, Mack left to sign a multi-year deal in Japan. When he returned, he couldn’t seem to get anyone to give him a full-time job, in spite of hitting well with the Red Sox and Royals, and he chose to retire after the 1998 season when injuries tore into his body too badly to return.

Next: Pitchers

Righties
By far the most productive major league pitcher out of the Olympians was 2000’s Roy Oswalt. Oswalt had 163 wins over a 13 year major league career and 2,245 1/3 major league innings, collecting a 49.9 bWAR, 18.5 more than the closest guy. Oswalt was the ace on many good Houston Astros team before a trade to the Philadelphia Phillies. Injuries cut his career short while he was still productive or we could be having a conversation about him as a Hall of Fame candidate.

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The 1988 pitching staff featured three excellent major league starters, though the most productive starters were not the most heralded one on the team. Ben McDonald was the guy everyone loved on that 1988 team, and he did have a successful major league career of 9 seasons, but Andy Benes and Charles Nagy each enjoyed 14-year careers, totaling 292 wins and nearly 4500 innings between them as consistent starters for multiple major league teams each.

The Olympic pitcher with the most All Star selections was the darling of the 2000 team, Ben Sheets. While Oswalt went onto the better major league career, Sheets was the ace of that 2000 team, and if it weren’t for injuries, his major league career could have been much more impressive. As it stood, Sheets had a 10-year career in which he won 94 games, threw just short of 1,600 innings, and was selected to 4 All Star games.

While neither quite has the numbers to push his way onto this list quite yet, two active pitchers were part of the 2008 team and have become aces in the major leagues. Stephen Strasburg and Jake Arrieta have taken very different paths to their current status, but they are currently separated by one career win, less than 1 career bWAR, and competing accolades (Strasburg has made 2 All-Star games to Arrieta’s one, while Arrieta has a Cy Young, and he’s admitted jealousy of Strasburg’s Silver Slugger).

While a number of pitchers have gone onto successful relief careers, the reliever I wanted to highlight had the second-shortest career of any of the guys with 100+ innings that I reviewed. Billy Koch pitched only 6 seasons, but in those seasons, he saved 163 games with a 120 ERA+. The member of the 1996 squad had a very bright, very quick career as a flame-throwing closer at the back of the bullpen, and when injury took away that high velocity, he was quickly out of the game.

Lefties
Jim Abbott is famous for his lack of a right hand and still being able to throw a no-hitter in his major league career and, frankly, even have a major league career, but he was also part of the 1988 squad. Abbott totaled 87 wins in his career before elbow injuries ended it after 1,674 innings of a 99 ERA+.

Next: David Ortiz defined his city

The role of the reliever in modern baseball is constantly evolving, but 2008’s Brian Duensing has truly been a guy who’s been more than a LOOGY as a lefty reliever. Typically utilized by his team to pitch long outings, Duensing has thrown 656 innings thus far in his 8-year career, which is still active, and he’s had a 99 ERA+ in that time, giving his team solid production whether the team needed multiple innings or just to get out one tough lefty.