The best baseball players born on Aug. 17

Who are the best players born on each day of the year? We have a list for every day on the calendar.

Here’s a subjective ranking of the top five for Aug. 17:

1) Dustin Pedroia (1983)
When captain Jason Varitek retired, the Red Sox had nary a moment with a leadership vacuum. Pedroia was there to take the mantle. He led by example, never taking a play off -- his grit and passion tangible on the field, in the dugout, from the stands. “As a competitor, no one stands quite as tall as Pedroia," Varitek said of his 5-foot-8 former teammate. "He may be short in stature, but he's tall in presence. He not only worked his way to the player that he is, but had a heart of a lion to get it done.” Pedroia was the American League Rookie of the Year in 2007 and MVP the following year. In 14 seasons in Boston, the second baseman earned four All-Star selections, four Gold Gloves and one Silver Slugger. More than that, he was the glue of World Series championship teams in 2007 and ’13. Pedroia earned another World Series ring in 2018, but a knee injury limited him to three games that year and six in 2019. Though he worked toward a comeback, he was unable to return in 2020 and announced his retirement before Spring Training in '21, having posted a bWAR total of 51.9 and a final slash line of .299/.365/.439.

2) Jorge Posada (1971)
One of the “Core Four” of the most recent Yankees dynasty, Posada was the starting catcher for four World Series title teams: 1998-2001 and 2009. (He also played eight games for the 1996 champs but did not appear in the postseason.) Posada had five All-Star seasons and won a Silver Slugger Award in each of them. Posada spent his entire 17-year career with the Yankees and retired after the 2011 season with an .848 career OPS, 275 home runs and 1,065 RBIs. However, he was one and done in the writers’ Hall of Fame voting in 2017.

3) Boog Powell (1941)
Four Orioles have won an MVP Award. Powell is in good company with Hall of Famers Cal Ripken Jr., Frank Robinson and Brooks Robinson. The first baseman took the AL honor in 1970, when he helped Baltimore to a World Series title with a .297/.412/.549 slash line, 35 homers and 114 RBIs. Powell was the AL MVP runner-up the previous season, when the O’s reached the World Series but were upended by the Miracle Mets. Powell, a four-time All-Star, had a 34-homer season for the Orioles’ first title team in 1966. In the 10-season span from 1963-72, he hit 265 homers to rank second in the AL, behind Harmon Killebrew. Whether it was his nickname or his slow-pitch softball frame, Powell connected with fans. He has remained visible in retirement through the old Miller Lite beer commercials and Boog’s Barbecue at Oriole Park at Camden Yards and other locations.

4) Rudy York (1913)
York led all AL and NL players with 277 homers from 1937-47, as well as 1,147 RBIs. That’s skewed by the fact York played every season through World War II, while many top stars missed time because of military service. Still, the first baseman/catcher was a potent offensive force. He made seven All-Star teams during his 13-season career and drew MVP votes in eight consecutive years from 1939-46. York helped the Tigers to a World Series title in 1945 and also reached the Fall Classic with the ’40 Tigers and ’46 Red Sox. He died in 1970 at age 56 after battling lung cancer.

5) Jim Davenport (1933)
Davenport broke in with the Giants in 1958, their first season in San Francisco, and stuck with the club through ’70. The third baseman was an All-Star in 1962, the year he took home his only Gold Glove and played in the World Series. Davenport totaled 1,142 hits in 1,501 games, batting .258 in an era dominated by pitching. He spent many years on the Giants’ coaching staff and served as their manager for most of 1985, posting a 56-88 record. Davenport died in 2016 at age 82.

Others of note:

Brett Myers (1980)
The right-hander had six seasons with double-digit wins as a starter and totaled 40 saves across two one-year stints as a closer for the Phillies and Astros.

Diego Segui (1937)
The right-hander led the Majors with a 2.56 ERA for the A’s in 1970, the best of his 15 seasons. He pitched for the expansion Seattle Pilots in 1969 and returned to Seattle as the expansion Mariners’ first Opening Day pitcher in 1977. His son, first baseman David Segui, matched him with 15 MLB seasons.

Skip Lockwood (1946)
A “bonus baby” big leaguer at age 18, Lockwood batted .121 as a pinch-hitter/third baseman for the Kansas City Athletics in 1965. When he returned to the Majors four years later with the Pilots, he was a pitcher. The right-hander was good enough to last 12 seasons in that role, including a turn as the Mets’ closer from 1976-79.

Vern Bickford (1920)
The right-hander started a World Series game as a Boston Braves rookie in 1948 and was an All-Star in ’49, but elbow problems shortened his MLB career to seven seasons. He died of cancer at age 39 in 1960.

Butch Hobson (1951)
The third baseman had a 30-homer season for the Red Sox in 1977 and served as their manager from 1992-94.

Dave Lemanczyk (1950)
The right-hander pitched eight MLB seasons and represented the Blue Jays at the 1979 All-Star Game.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for Aug. 17? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.