The best baseball players born on Jan. 31

Here’s a subjective rating of the highest 5 for Jan. 31, one of many strongest birthdays in baseball.

1) Ernie Banks (1931)
How do you decide a No. 1? There is a case to be made for any of the highest three, however right here’s the argument for Banks: His 14 All-Star Games in 11 seasons almost matches the mixed whole of Nolan Ryan (eight) and Jackie Robinson (seven), and his seven-year peak bWAR of 52.1 tops these of the subsequent two gamers on this record. So beloved on the North Side that he was referred to as Mr. Cub, Banks was the primary back-to-back NL MVP winner (1958-59) and his 5 40-homer seasons at shortstop are surpassed solely by Alex Rodriguez’s six.

2) Jackie Robinson (1919)
Robinson is a lot greater than his stats, to the purpose that in 2008 the Hall of Fame unveiled a brand new plaque to acknowledge the historical past he made: “Displayed tremendous courage and poise in 1947 when he integrated the modern Major Leagues in the face of intense adversity.” He broke the colour line in 1947, profitable NL Rookie of the Year, and two years later was named NL MVP. His 10 seasons with the Dodgers included six World Series, profitable it in 1955. In 1997, 50 years after his debut, MLB retired his quantity throughout the sport and the BBWAA renamed the Rookie of the Year Award in his honor.

3) Nolan Ryan (1947)
“The Express” leads all Jan. 31 gamers in bWAR (81.3) partially as a result of his 27 seasons within the Majors is probably the most by any pitcher in AL/NL historical past. He led his league in strikeouts 11 occasions – and in walks eight occasions. He additionally allowed the fewest hits per 9 innings (amongst starters) 12 occasions, and he’s the profession chief in all three classes with 5,714 Okay’s, 2,795 BB and 6.6 H/9. Ryan was the primary participant to go well with up for MLB’s first 4 growth groups (the Mets, Angels, Astros and Senators/Rangers), and he’s the one participant to have his quantity retired by three groups for which he performed (Angels, Astros and Rangers).

4) George Burns (1893)
The solely different Jan. 31 participant with a bWAR over 30 (35.1), Burns hit .307/.354/.429 from 1914-29 enjoying for the Tigers, A’s, Indians, Red Sox and Yankees. He twice led the Majors in hits, together with his 1926 AL MVP season: 216 hits, a .358/.394/.494 line and 115 RBIs. Burns additionally hit 64 doubles that season, nonetheless tied for second all-time with Joe Medwick, three behind record-holder Earl Webb.

5) Josh Johnson (1984)
Johnson’s 915 profession strikeouts are second amongst pitchers born on at the present time – however they’re simply 16 % of Ryan’s whole. A two-time All-Star who spent eight of his 9 seasons with the Marlins, Johnson remains to be close to the highest of Miami’s profession lists for pitcher bWAR (25.8), ERA (3.15) and WHIP (1.23).

Others of notice:
Tommy La Stella (1989)
La Stella broke in with Atlanta in 2014 and was traded to the Cubs earlier than the ’15 season. A member of Chicago’s 2016 championship group, La Stella didn’t seem in that World Series. He was named an All-Star reserve in 2019 with the Angels, however broke his proper leg per week earlier than the sport. Traded to the A’s in 2020, La Stella crossed the Bay to play for the Giants in 2021. He signed with the Mariners for the 2023 season.

Buck Ewing (1903)
Not to be confused with the Hall of Fame catcher from the nineteenth century, William Monroe Ewing was a backstop within the Negro Leagues with the Chicago American Giants, Columbus Buckeyes and Homestead Grays. In the late Twenties, he was the titular draw of Buck Ewing’s Stars, a barnstorming group of Black gamers based mostly in Schenectady, N.Y. And in 1930, it was Ewing’s harm — the legend goes — that prompted the Grays to name an 18-year-old Josh Gibson out of the stands to fill in behind the plate.

Hank Aguirre (1931)
A left-hander who largely pitched in aid for Cleveland and Detroit within the ’50s and ’60s, Aguirre’s AL-leading 2.21 ERA in 1962 (his lone All-Star season) remains to be the second-best single-season mark for the Tigers within the Expansion Era.