Best baseball players born on Christmas Eve

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Perhaps in the spirit of giving, the baseball gods have gifted us several notable MLB players on Christmas Eve. Here’s a subjective ranking of the top five born on Dec. 24.

1) Kevin Millwood (1974)
Though Millwood might have been overshadowed on the late ‘90s Braves by several future Hall of Fame teammates, he more than held his own on a perennial contender. Millwood’s best year came in Atlanta’s pennant-winning season of 1999, in which he was an All-Star, led the National League with a 0.996 WHIP and finished third in the NL Cy Young voting. That season, he also threw 10 shutout innings against the Cardinals on Aug. 28 and hurled a one-hitter against the Astros in the NLDS. Other career highlights include throwing a no-hitter with the Phillies in 2003 and tossing the first six innings of a combined no-no for the Mariners in 2012.

2) William Contreras (1997)
William is one of two Major League catchers in his family. His brother, Willson, debuted with the Cubs in 2016. William and Willson are not the first brothers to catch in the big leagues at the same time -- they follow in the footsteps of Bengie, José and Yadier Molina, who are the only three brothers in MLB history to all be catchers and all win World Series rings. In 2022, the Contrerases joined a short list of brothers to start an All-Star Game together. After three seasons with the Braves, William was traded to the Brewers, and he won a Silver Slugger Award while helping Milwaukee to the NL Central title in 2023. He followed that up last season with career highs in homers (23) and RBIs (92) while finishing fifth in the NL MVP voting.

3) Grégor Blanco (1983)
Blanco was a key cog for two World Series-winning Giants teams in 2012 and 2014, and he made it to the postseason with San Francisco again in 2016. However, his single most heroic moment came in the regular season, not the playoffs (though he delivered key hits and defensive plays in both World Series). On June 13, 2012, Blanco helped preserve Matt Cain’s perfect game with an unbelievable diving grab in the seventh inning. Cain went on to complete the perfecto, the first in Giants franchise history.

4) Jamey Wright (1974)
This right-handed hurler bounced around quite a bit, pitching for 10 different teams over a 19-year career. Wright dealt with some wildness during his playing days, leading the NL in hit-by-pitches in both 2000 and 2001. He finally made it to the postseason with the Rays in 2013, his 18th Major League season. After tossing more than 2,000 innings in his MLB tenure, Wright embarked on a new chapter when he became a Minor League pitching coach for the Dodgers in 2021.

5) Joe Quinn (1862)
This Australia native became the first player from Down Under to play in the Major Leagues when he made his debut in 1884, and he spent 17 seasons in the big leagues as an infielder and outfielder. Quinn transitioned to managing while he was still a player, and he has the unfortunate distinction of managing the 1899 Cleveland Spiders to their 20-134 record. After Quinn, it took 102 years until the next Australian player, Craig Shipley, debuted for MLB in 1986.

Others of note:

Miguel Castro (1994)
The veteran right-handed reliever pitched for six teams over the first nine years of his Major League career. Castro, a native of the Dominican Republic, helped the D-backs to the NL pennant in 2023.

Victor Cruz (1957)
No, not THAT Victor Cruz. This MLB player may not have salsa danced in the end zone, but he did play for four different teams over five seasons. Cruz was involved in three trades for notable players, first in 1977 for Pete Vuckovich (1982 AL Cy Young winner), then in 1978 for Alfredo Griffin (1979 AL Rookie of the Year) and again in 1980 for Bert Blyleven (2011 Hall of Fame inductee).

Andrew Romine (1985)
The 11-year veteran decided to hang up his cleats after the 2021 season, but not before he made history by pitching to his brother, Austin, in a lopsided loss to the Brewers on Aug. 12. In doing so, he helped create the first “brother battery” in an MLB game since 1962. Romine is also notable for being the most recent Major Leaguer to play all nine positions in one game.

Zeke Wilson (1869)
Wilson played for three NL teams in the 1890s that have all since changed their names or ceased operations: the Boston Beaneaters (now the Atlanta Braves), the Cleveland Spiders (folded after the 1899 season) and the St. Louis Perfectos (now the Cardinals). He and several other Spiders players were sent from Cleveland to St. Louis in 1899 after the Spiders’ owners bought the Perfectos, thus decimating Cleveland’s roster and leading to its infamous 20-134 season. Wilson finished his five-year career with a 52-44 record, a 4.03 ERA and 84 complete games in 106 starts.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for Dec. 24? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.