The best baseball players born on Feb. 11
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. 11.
1) Dansby Swanson (1994)
Selected with the No. 1 overall pick by Arizona in the 2015 MLB Draft, Swanson won the World Series as the shortstop for the Braves in 2021. He was selected as an All-Star and and won a Gold Glove Award in 2022 with the Braves, before signing a seven-year deal to join the Cubs during the offseason. Swanson was an All-Star again in 2023, and he earned a second Gold Glove Award for his defensive prowess in his first season with Chicago.
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2) Ollie Brown (1944)
Brown was known as the “Original Padre” after the outfielder was selected with the first pick of the 1968 expansion draft by the San Diego Padres. He hit San Diego’s first double in the club’s inaugural game against the Astros on April 8, 1969, when he started in right field.
3) Ben Oglivie (1949)
A Panama native, Oglivie put up his best season in 1980, when he slashed .304/.362/.563. He was named an American League All-Star that season, launching 41 home runs for a tie with Reggie Jackson for the AL lead. He was also the first non-American born player to lead the AL in homers.
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4) Sammy Ellis (1941)
Ellis and teammate Jim Maloney both posted 20-win seasons in 1965, when Ellis cruised to a 22-10 record with 15 complete games and a National League All-Star appearance. The two were the last Reds right-handed pitchers to win 20 games in a single season until Johnny Cueto did so in 2014.
5) Brian Daubach (1972)
Daubach played five of his seven Major League seasons as part of the Boston Red Sox, and even earned a World Series ring in 2004. He was known as a scrappy, gritty player and was once thrown at six times following a benches clearing brawl against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2000.
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Others of note:
Jimmy Ryan (1863)
Ryan, who was nicknamed “Pony,” has the highest WAR (43.7 WAR) of any player born on Feb. 11 and was the National League home run and hits leader in 1888.
Ray Collins (1887)
A member of the 1912 World Series champion Boston Red Sox, Collins was part of the inaugural class of the Vermont Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Want to see more baseball birthdays for February 11? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.