On This Day in Baseball

April 17

25 notable birthdays · 18 in memoriam

Born on April 17

Most accomplished baseball figures with this birthday, ranked by career impact.

01

Cap Anson ⭐ HOF b. 1852

.334 avg, 97 HR 1871–1897 Marshalltown, USA
02

Alexander Cartwright ⭐ HOF b. 1820

MLB player New York, USA
03

Jake Daubert b. 1884

.303 avg, 56 HR 1910–1924 Shamokin, USA
04

Charlie Ferguson b. 1863

99-64, 2.67 ERA 1884–1887 Charlottesville, USA
05

Solly Hemus b. 1923

.273 avg, 51 HR 1949–1959 Phoenix, USA
06

Jed Lowrie b. 1984

.257 avg, 121 HR 2008–2022 Salem, USA
07

Marquis Grissom b. 1967

.272 avg, 227 HR 1989–2005 Atlanta, USA
08

Ryan Raburn b. 1981

.253 avg, 93 HR 2004–2017 Tampa, USA
09

Denny Walling b. 1954

.271 avg, 49 HR 1975–1992 Neptune, USA
10

Dan Jennings b. 1987

.500 avg, 0 HR 2012–2019 Berkeley, USA
11

Will Dion b. 2000

MLB player 2026– Sulphur, USA
12

Logan Gillaspie b. 1997

MLB player 2022– Bakersfield, USA
13

Ronny Simon b. 2000

.243 avg, 1 HR 2025– La Romana, D.R.
14

Craig Worthington b. 1965

.230 avg, 33 HR 1988–1996 Los Angeles, USA
15

Jorge Piedra b. 1979

.275 avg, 12 HR 2004–2006 Sun Valley, USA
16

Deolis Guerra b. 1989

.000 avg, 0 HR 2015–2021 San Felix, Venezuela
17

Bob Osborn b. 1903

27-17, 4.32 ERA 1925–1931 San Diego, USA
18

Mauricio Llovera b. 1996

MLB player 2020– El Tigre, Venezuela
19

Bobby Stevens b. 1907

.343 avg, 0 HR 1931–1931 Chevy Chase, USA
20

Tom Runnells b. 1955

.174 avg, 0 HR 1985–1986 Greeley, USA
21

Clyde Smoll b. 1914

2-8, 5.37 ERA 1940–1940 Quakertown, USA
22

Henry Nears b. 1907

.417 avg, 0 HR Checotah, USA
23

Max St. Pierre b. 1980

.222 avg, 0 HR 2010–2010 Quebec, CAN
24

Keith Johnson b. 1971

.500 avg, 0 HR 2000–2000 Hanford, USA
25

Morrie Schick b. 1892

.147 avg, 0 HR 1917–1917 Chicago, USA

Remembered on April 17

Baseball figures lost on this date.

01

Dutch Leonard 1909–1983

191-181, 3.25 ERA 1933–1953
02

Jack Quinn 1883–1946

247-218, 3.29 ERA 1909–1933
03

Bobby Mathews 1851–1898

297-248, 2.86 ERA 1871–1887
04

Bill Serena 1924–1996

.251 avg, 48 HR 1949–1954
05

Dave Frost 1952–2023

33-37, 4.10 ERA 1977–1982
06

Dick Brown 1935–1970

.244 avg, 62 HR 1957–1965
07

Sonny Boy Jeffries 1914–1995

.667 avg, 0 HR
08

Les Mallon 1905–1991

.283 avg, 8 HR 1931–1935
09

Stan Johnson 1937–2012

.111 avg, 1 HR 1960–1961
10

Ricardo Torres 1891–1960

.297 avg, 0 HR 1920–1922
11

Thomas Griffin 1857–1933

.220 avg, 0 HR 1884–1884
12

John Bergh 1857–1883

.182 avg, 0 HR 1876–1880
13

Bobby Winkles 1930–2020

MLB player
14

Kid Willson 1895–1964

.091 avg, 0 HR 1918–1927
15

Oscar Westerberg 1882–1909

.333 avg, 0 HR 1907–1907
16

Pat Deisel 1876–1948

.667 avg, 0 HR 1902–1903
17

Don Jefferson 1895–1994

MLB player
18

John Rudolph 1882–1967

.250 avg, 0 HR 1903–1904

April 17 in the record

25 baseball figures born on April 17 are listed, led by Cap Anson. The HOF tag marks Cap Anson and Alexander Cartwright. From Alexander Cartwright in 1820 to Will Dion in 2000, the births cover a long stretch of the game. Behind Cap Anson come Alexander Cartwright (b. 1820) and Jake Daubert (b. 1884, .303 avg, 56 HR). D.R., Venezuela, and CAN are also represented among the April 17 births. Career lines shown range from Cap Anson's .334 avg, 97 HR to Charlie Ferguson's 99-64, 2.67 ERA on the mound. Recent names on the April 17 list, Will Dion, Logan Gillaspie, and Ronny Simon, show careers still open. 18 baseball figures died on April 17; Dutch Leonard is listed first. The memorial list continues with Jack Quinn (1883–1946) and Bobby Mathews (1851–1898). The deaths span 1883, John Bergh, to 2023, Dave Frost. Names are ordered by a career-impact score that weighs Hall of Fame status and career totals, which is why Cap Anson is listed first.