December 25th, 2023
It’s fitting that Christmas Day gifted us with three Hall of Fame players. Here’s a subjective ranking of the top five for December 25:
1) Rickey Henderson (1958)
The stolen-base champ, 10-time All-Star and 1990 AL MVP with the A’s is a no-brainer lead for this list. Always quotable, ever confident, the “Man of Steal” was a joy to watch on the field. Here’s just one of many wild Henderson facts: He nearly ran a marathon over his career, just by stealing bases. His 1,406 steals, at 90 feet apiece, comes out to 126,540 feet … or 23.97 miles; just over two shy of a marathon.
2) Nellie Fox (1927)
Inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997, Fox was a crucial piece of the “Go-Go” White Sox of the 1950s. He was the 1959 AL MVP, a 15-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glover, receiving the inaugural award at second base in 1957. Incredibly, his highest strikeout total in a single season was … 18!
3) Pud Galvin (1856)
His pair of nicknames – Gentle Jeems and The Little Steam Engine – and his incredible look were Hall of Fame-worthy in their own right, but Pud was a pretty good ballplayer, too. He captured an ERA title (1.16) in his rookie season and finished his 18-year career with 1,807 strikeouts, impressive for the era in which he played. Galvin was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Veteran’s Committee in 1965.
4) Manny Trillo (1950)
Known as a slick-fielding second baseman, Trillo captured three Gold Glove Awards and was a stalwart in the middle infield for the 1980 Phillies, who won the franchise’s first World Series title. He was the NLCS MVP during that playoff run, hitting .381/.364/.571 in the series against the Astros, with one memorable highlight being a relay throw to cut off a run at home in the decisive Game 5.
5) Hideki Okajima (1975)
Following a lengthy career in Japan, Okajima signed with the Red Sox as a 31-year-old in 2007 and quickly became an important part of their bullpen as a setup man to Jonathan Papelbon. Though he had an inauspicious start to his Major League career, allowing a home run on the first pitch he threw, Okajima settled in and did not allow a run in 19 appearances from April 6 to May 20 of his rookie season. He became the first Japanese-born pitcher to appear in the World Series when he pitched 2 1/3 perfect frames in Game 2 against the Rockies in 2007.
Nabil Crismatt (1994)
OK, this one is admittedly more about how perfect it is that Crismatt was born on … Christmas. But who knows? The Padres reliever, whose big league career got underway in 2020, could end up being a decent pitcher.
Willy Taveras (1981)
He was the runner-up to Ryan Howard in the 2005 NL Rookie of the Year vote and led the National League in stolen bases with 68 in 2008.
Want to see more baseball birthdays for December 25? Find the complete list on Baseball Reference.
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