The best baseball players born on Feb. 27

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 Feb. 27:

1) Johnny Pesky (1919)
Yes, that Pesky. Although he only played in parts of 10 Major League seasons, Pesky was immortalized when his name was aptly applied to that quirky right-field foul pole at Fenway Park, an allusion to his lack of power. But while he's best known for that, Pesky was one of the best hitters in baseball, albeit briefly. He led the Majors in hits in his rookie year, missed the 1943-45 seasons to serve in the Navy, and returned to lead the American League in hits in both 1946 and 1947. Despite being hampered by injuries in the second half of his career and spending his last few seasons with the Tigers and Senators, Pesky would re-join the Red Sox organization at various times as a broadcaster, coach and front office executive, and, along with Carl Yastrzemski, hoisted Boston's long-awaited 2004 World Series banner and received championship rings in 2004 and 2007.

2) Hilton Smith (1907)
Smith, a two-way Negro League legend, is the only Hall of Famer to be born on Feb. 27. He spent 12 seasons with the Kansas City Monarchs, in which time he posted a 2.86 ERA in 844 innings, all while hitting .294/.312/.407. That stellar performance earned him six All-Star appearances and a 1942 World Series ring with the Monarchs. He threw the first Negro American League no-hitter on record in his first start of the 1937 season. While at times overshadowed by Satchel Paige, for whom he pitched in relief during Paige's stint with the Monarchs, Smith's accomplishments speak for themselves, and he was posthumously inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001 by the Veterans Committee, the 18th Negro Leagues player to receive the honor.

3) Denard Span (1984)
Span made the rounds in his 11-year career, putting in time with the Twins, Nationals, Giants, Rays, and Mariners, and was part of the trade that sent Evan Longoria to the Giants in 2017. Span hit 10 or more triples in a season three times, leading the AL in 2009 and all of baseball in 2013, and is one of a select group of players with more career triples (72) than home runs (71).

4) Aníbal Sánchez (1984)
Sánchez has been around the block since his debut in 2006, having pitched for the Marlins, Tigers, Braves and Nationals in 15 seasons. As a rookie with the Marlins, Sánchez threw a no-hitter in his 14th career start and is one of just 15 players to do so within their first 14 starts. While often flying under the radar, Sánchez has enjoyed quite a bit of postseason success, with his most notable performance coming in Game 1 of the 2019 NLCS, when he tossed 7 2/3 innings of one-hit ball, setting the tone for what would be a series sweep by the Nationals on the way to their first World Series title. Sánchez elected not to sign for the 2021 season before rejoining the Nationals for '22.

5) Yovani Gallardo (1986)
Gallardo, one of just 87 Mexican-born pitchers in MLB history, earned an All-Star selection in 2010 and finished seventh in National League Cy Young voting in 2011. Most notably, however, he could rake. He won a Silver Slugger in 2010 after hitting .254/.329/.508 with four doubles and four home runs, and since the AL adopted the DH in 1973, Gallardo ranks fifth among all pitchers with 12 career homers.

Others of note:

Matt Stairs (1968)
Stairs appeared in 19 Major League seasons, the most of any player born on Feb. 27, and was a member of the 2008 World Series champion Phillies.

Connie Ryan (1920)
Primarily a utility infielder, Ryan represented the Boston Braves in one All-Star appearance in 1944.

Cy Perkins (1896)
Perkins is probably most notable today for being the guy who lost his job as the A's starting catcher to future Hall of Famer Mickey Cochrane, but he nevertheless played 17 seasons in the Majors.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for Feb. 27? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.