The best baseball players born on Dec. 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 Dec. 3.

1) Wayne Garrett (1947)
The list of players born on Dec. 3 does not feature any big stars, but Garrett gets the nod thanks to his roles on the champion 1969 Miracle Mets and the '73 "Ya Gotta Believe" Mets pennant-winning team. Garrett, a left-handed-hitting third baseman, did not hit much (.239 career average), but he walked a lot (.350 career OBP) and had a dependable glove at the hot corner. As a rookie in '69 he platooned with veteran Ed Charles, and was a regular at the hot corner in '73, when he had his best season, batting .256 with 72 walks (.348 OBP) and 16 homers. He went 5-for-13 with two doubles and a homer -- a two-run shot that put the Mets ahead in Game 3 -- in New York's three-game sweep of the Braves in the '69 NLCS, doubled and scored the go-ahead run in the decisive Game 5 win over the Reds in '73. He also hit two homers in the seven-game World Series loss to the A's that year. He later spent time with the Expos and Cardinals.

2) Darryl Hamilton (1964)
A left-handed-hitting center fielder, Hamilton came up with Brewers and had his best seasons with them, batting .311 in 1991, stealing 41 bases in '92 and batting .310 in '93. The speedster walked often, later putting up OBP above or near .400 later in his career, which lasted 13 seasons, ending in 2001 with a .285/.360/.385 batting line. He was charged with only 14 errors in his career, good for a .995 fielding percentage, and led his league in fielding percentage for an outfielder four times. He went 6-for-17 with a double and two RBIs in the Mets' NLCS win over the Braves in 1999. Hamilton died tragically in 2015 at age 50.

3) Clay Dalrymple (1936)
Dalrymple, a left-handed-hitting catcher who made his mark with a strong arm -- he threw out 48 percent of potential basestealers in his 12-year career -- was a regular for the Phillies during most of the 1960s after being taken from the Braves in the 1959 Rule 5 Draft. His best offensive season was in '62, when he hit .276/.393/.416 with 11 homers and 54 RBIs. He twice led the NL in double plays and caught-stealing percentage. Acquired by the Orioles in 1969, he was a third-string catcher and pinch-hitter for the AL champions and went 2-for-2 as a pinch-hitter in Baltimore's World Series loss to the Mets -- the only Series plate appearances in his career. As a result, he's the only player to get a base hit off Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan in a World Series game.

4) Paul Byrd (1970)
The right-handed Byrd was a steadily successful pitcher who played for 14 seasons, finishing with a 109-96 record and a 4.41 ERA while pitching for seven teams from 1995-2009. He was drafted by Cleveland, traded to the Mets, then the Braves. Byrd finally emerged with the Phillies, who claimed him on waivers, winning 15 games and making his only All-Star team in 1999. He went 17-11 for the 100-loss Royals in 2002, then signed with the Braves as a free agent. Returning from Tommy John surgery, He eventually wound up back with Cleveland, winning two postseason games in 2007. He was 3-1 despite a 5.40 ERA in eight career postseason games, including five starts. He worked as a color analyst on Braves telecasts after his retirement.

5) Joe Collins (1922)
Collins was a left-handed first baseman for the dynastic Yankees in the 1950s, frequently platooning with the right-handed Moose Skowron. Collins played for four of the five straight Yankees championship teams, missing only '49 in the 1949-53 run of World Series titles. His best season was 1952, when hit hit .280/.364/.481 with 18 homers and 59 RBIs. He hit 86 homers in his 10-year career, but he hit four in World Series play -- he played in seven of them, winning five rings.

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