The best baseball players born on Dec. 19

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 Dec. 19.

1) Al Kaline (1934)
The lone Hall of Famer born on this date, Mr. Tiger solidified his place in Cooperstown with 18 All-Star selections, 10 American League Gold Glove Awards, a batting title at age 20, a World Series title in 1968, 3,007 career hits, election into the Hall of Fame in his first year on the ballot and his No. 6 retired by a grateful organization.

• Top 10 moments in Kaline's career

Kaline spent 67 years in baseball, all with Detroit, and retired with more games played (2,834) and home runs (399) with the Tigers than anyone in history. He signed with the organization the day after his high school graduation in 1953 and spent the next 22 seasons as a player before shifting to television analyst, coach, mentor, special assistant in the Tigers' front office. Kaline led outfield drills in Spring Training as well, doing so right up until a month before his death, April 6, 2020, at age 85.

2) Ian Kennedy (1984)
A first-round Draft pick of the Yankees in 2006, Kennedy quickly rose to fame, cracking the Majors after just one season and earning the most wins (21) and best win percentage (.840) in the NL with the D-backs in '11. While a rash of injuries ended his starting-pitching career after the 2018 season, Kennedy enjoyed a resurgence from the 'pen, where he earned 66 saves and pitched to a 3.91 ERA from 2019-22.

3) Aaron Loup (1987)
A situational side-arming southpaw (say that three times fast), Loup's journeyman career has seen him with six teams in his first 12 seasons. Most remarkable, he is one of a small number of pitchers in history to be credited with two wins in one day. On Aug. 16, 2020, Loup worked a hitless 2/3-inning for the Rays against the Blue Jays in a completion of a game that had been suspended by weather the day before. He earned the victory, then worked a scoreless seventh inning of the nightcap that Tampa Bay also won to give him two Ws in less than eight hours.

4) Russell Branyan (1975)
Branyan played for 10 teams across his 14 seasons and clobbered homers with all of them, amassing 194 career round-trippers when all was said and done. He never quite caught on as an everyday player and his batting average suffered as a result, but Branyan did enjoy a banner year with the Mariners in 2009, with career marks in home runs (31) and RBIs (76).

5) Rafael Soriano (1979)
Soriano might not quite have lived up to his Top 30 prospect hype but he still managed to put together a solid carer that spanned 14 seasons and 591 appearances. The righty reliever's best campaign came in 2010 with the Rays, when he earned an AL-leading 45 saves, won the AL Rolaids Relief Award and was chosen for his lone All-Star Game. Soriano also threw an immaculate inning that season, on Aug. 23 against the Angels.

Want to see more baseball birthdays for Dec. 19? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.