Blue Jays all-time best starting lineup based on WAR

Center field: Vernon Wells, 24.8 fWAR

The Blue Jays have had some elite center fielders over the years. While Lloyd Moseby and Devon White are close, the all-time best center fielder is Vernon Wells, who amassed a 24.8 fWAR during his time in Toronto, the fifth-best mark among position players in franchise history.

A first-round, fifth-overall pick, Wells is the team leader in games played by a center fielder with 1,393, just one more than Moseby. His 223 home runs are the most at the position, placing him fourth among all players. He leads all center fielders in hits (1529), doubles (339), runs (789) and RBI (813).

After debuting in 1999 as a 20-year-old, he played only 57 games in the majors between 1999 and 2001. By 2002 he was ready to take over as the franchise center fielder and patrolled the outfield at SkyDome for the remainder of the decade.

Wells hit his stride and had his best year at the plate in 2003, in his age-24 season. He hit .317 with a .909 OPS and led the majors with 215 hits. He swatted 33 home runs, drove in 117 and led the American League in doubles (49) and total bases (373), finishing eighth in AL MVP voting. He also earned his first of three All-Star nods and a Silver Slugger award.

He also got the job done with the leather, winning three consecutive Gold Gloves from 2004 to 2006.

Unfortunately for Wells, he never experienced the postseason in Toronto and could never live up to the expectations that came with the massive seven-year, $126 million contract extension the team gave him in 2006 after his second All-Star campaign.

He never quite found the form that had made him the highest-paid player in franchise history, and the team eventually traded Wells to the Angels following the 2011 season. He played three more seasons with Los Angeles and the Yankees before hanging up the cleats.

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