The best baseball players born on Feb. 3

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. 3:

1) Fred Lynn (1952)
Lynn was a complete package from the moment he reached the Majors at age 22. He batted .419 in a September callup in 1974 and backed up that precociousness the next year by becoming the first player to win an MVP Award in his rookie season. Lynn had a slash line of .331/.401/.566 and won a Gold Glove for his flashy play in center field while leading the Red Sox to the World Series. He was an All-Star each of his first nine full seasons, claimed three more Gold Gloves and won the 1979 AL batting crown. Injuries eventually took their toll, but Lynn lasted 17 seasons and finished with 306 home runs and a 50.2 bWAR.

2) Bake McBride (1949)
Another center fielder of the 1970s who hit the ground running, McBride was the 1974 National League Rookie of the Year after batting .309 with 81 runs scored and 30 stolen bases with the Cardinals. McBride was an All-Star in 1976. He moved to right field after a 1977 trade to the Phillies, who had Gold Glover Garry Maddox patrolling center, and batted .309 as a starter for the 1980 World Series championship team. McBride finished his 11-year MLB career with a .299 batting average.

3) Joe Coleman (1947)
The third player selected in the inaugural MLB Draft in 1965, Coleman was on a Major League mound for the Senators a mere three months later at age 18. And the right-hander tossed a complete-game four-hitter in his debut to beat the Kansas City A’s, 6-1, at D.C. Stadium. That launched a 15-year career that saw Coleman go 142-135 with a 3.70 ERA and 1,728 strikeouts. His best years came with the Tigers: two 20-win seasons (1971, ’73) and his only All-Star nod (’72).

4) Slim Sallee (1885)
Sallee was noted for his control despite an unorthodox delivery. The left-hander would swing his plant leg to a 45-degree angle between home plate and first base, and his follow-through came from the far first-base side of the pitching rubber. He exasperated batters for 14 MLB seasons, going 174-143 with a 2.56 ERA for the Cardinals, Giants and Reds. He pitched in the 1917 World Series for the Giants and the 1919 World Series for the Reds. Sallee died in 1950 at age 65.

5) Rougned Odor (1994)
The second baseman posted three 30-homer years among his first eight seasons in the Majors, but he’s a high-strikeout, low-OBP player.

Others of note:
Lucas Duda (1986)
The first baseman/outfielder had a pair of 30-homer seasons during his 10-year career, spent mostly with the Mets.

Skip Schumaker (1980)
With 1,149 games played, primarily with the Cardinals, the outfielder/second baseman ranks third behind Lynn and Odor for players born on Feb. 3. Schumaker won the NL Manager of the Year Award for the Marlins in 2023, his first season as a Major League manager.

Anthony Bender (1995)
The right-hander went from independent ball in 2020 to a rookie revelation with the Marlins in 2021, posting a 2.79 ERA in 60 appearances.

Lou Criger (1872)
The catcher was Cy Young’s batterymate with three teams: the Cleveland Spiders, St. Louis Perfectos/Cardinals and Boston Americans. He caught every game of the first World Series as Boston prevailed over Pittsburgh in eight games in 1903. Criger died in 1934 at age 62.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for Feb. 3? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.