The best baseball players born on April 13

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 April 13.

1) Lorenzo Cain (1986)

Cain’s career is bookended with stints as a member of the Brewers, but he achieved his best success while with the Royals from 2011-17. His .533 average vs. the Orioles in the 2014 American League Championship Series helped lead Kansas City to its first of back-to-back World Series appearances. The Royals won it all with Cain as their center fielder in 2015. He was a two-time All-Star -- one each for Kansas City and Milwaukee.

2) Hunter Pence (1983)

A four-time All-Star who played for the Astros, Giants, Phillies and Rangers, Pence was a right fielder with a unique batting stance and mechanics that made him successful. A fan favorite, especially in San Francisco, he was part of two World Series-winning teams with the Giants and at one point, he was the Major League’s leading “iron man” with a consecutive-games played streak of 383 -- including 331--straight starts. Overall, Pence batted .279 with a .794 OPS and 244 home runs for his 14-year career.

3) Ricardo Rincon (1970)

Fans of the film “Moneyball” heard Rincon’s name quite a bit during a scene as A’s general manager Billy Beane (played by Brad Pitt) badly wanted to trade for him during a 2002 playoff push. The deal got done and Rincon did his part to help Oakland reach the postseason. Over an 11-year career with Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Oakland, St. Louis and the New York Mets, Rincon was an often tough left-handed reliever as he posted a 3.59 career ERA.

4) Steve Pearce (1983)

Born on the exact same day and year as Pence, Pearce had a 13-year Major League career -- largely as a role player at left field, first base and second base. He had stops for seven different clubs from 2007-19, but had his best moments near the end of his career. In 2018 with the Red Sox, he batted .333 with three homers and was named the World Series MVP as Boston defeated the Dodgers in five games.

5) Herman Long (1866)

Born just under a year after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, Long played for five clubs in 16 seasons from 1889-1904 and amassed a career WAR of 37.0. He spent 13 seasons playing shortstop for the Boston Beaneaters and was a star for the club as it won five National League pennants. Long was a career .277 hitter with 91 home runs -- including 88 for Boston, which went on to become the Braves. He was a 2015 inductee into the Braves Hall of Fame.

Others of note:

Kid Elberfeld (1875)

A shortstop who played for six clubs over 14 years from 1898-1914, Elberfeld was known for being a scrappy brawler. He had a .271 average and 33.3 WAR for his career.

Lizzie Murphy (1894)

Known as the "Queen of Baseball," Murphy was the first woman to play baseball professionally when she started being paid to play semi-pro ball at the age of 17. In 1922 at Fenway Park, she also became the first woman to compete against Major League players when she participated in an exhibition game against the Red Sox.

Mark Leiter (1963)

The brother of fellow pitcher Al Leiter, he had a 4.57 ERA over 11 seasons with eight different clubs.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for April 13? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.