It was nice for Rich Hill to start a couple of games for the Royals this season and remind us that there’s still a spot for old guys in this game. Born in 1980, and making his debut in 2005, Hill spans large swaths of baseball history. He reminds us of where we have been.
Meanwhile, the Braves’ Didier Fuentes, currently in the Minors, made his MLB debut on June 20 at the age of 20: He was born literally two days after Hill made his debut back in 2005. He, and his fellow youngsters, remind us of where we are going.
Thus, in honor of the inexorable nature of time itself, we take a look at the best baseball player at each age in the sport. Now, for the sake of simplicity, we are going with their “baseball age,” which is the age they were on June 30 of this year, as opposed to their actual age at this exact second. This allows us to not sweat individual birthdays so much, giving us a universal figure to work from, and it also, if I’m being honest, makes it a lot easier to search on Baseball Reference.
We’re accounting for this year’s success in this tally, of course, but we’re really trying to pick the best overall player. What you’ve done up to this point in your career, particularly recently, factors in as well. You can watch the whole arc of a baseball career in this list.
20: Samuel Basallo, C/1B, Orioles
The Orioles called up Basallo just in time for our purposes, and he even had a couple of RBIs and his first hit in his first game. He’s yet another of the seemingly endless stream of Orioles position players to come up through their system, and he’s one of the best, arriving as MLB Pipeline’s No. 8 overall prospect. He won’t qualify as a prospect for long, but he may be in Baltimore for quite some time after signing an eight-year contract extension just days into his big league tenure.
Runner-Up: Didier Fuentes, RP, Braves
21: Roman Anthony, OF, Red Sox
Too early? The Red Sox certainly don’t think so, as witnessed by that eight-year contract extension of his own. After a slow start, he has been one of the central figures of Boston’s surge over the last couple of months. He looks like a future All-Star. He looks like an All-Star right now, actually.
Runners-Up: Jackson Chourio, OF, Brewers; Junior Caminero, 3B, Rays
22: Nick Kurtz, 1B, A’s
It speaks to how much young talent is out there right now that this was a very, very difficult choice. You’ve got James Wood. You’ve got Evan Carter. You’ve got Jackson freaking Merrill. But Kurtz has been so overwhelming during his first half-season in the bigs – he hits for power, he gets on base, he hits for average, he does absolutely everything at the plate – that he’s impossible to ignore. And such a joy to watch. This is a guy you’re not going to be able to take your eyes off for the next decade.
Runners-Up: Jackson Merrill, OF, Padres; James Wood, OF, Nationals
Runners-Up: Elly De La Cruz, SS, Reds; Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF, Cubs
24: Julio Rodríguez, OF, Mariners
He might not be the best player on his team anymore, or at least not the one most likely to be an MVP, but the Mariners’ success this year is a reminder of just how electrifying Julio is. How can he still possibly be this young?
Runners-Up: Gunnar Henderson, SS, Orioles; Corbin Carroll, OF, Diamondbacks
25: Bobby Witt Jr., SS, Royals
He’s not quite having the MVP-level season he had in 2024, but he’s awfully close. He already looks like a Hall of Famer in waiting.
Runners-Up: Geraldo Perdomo, SS, Diamondbacks; Bryan Woo, SP, Mariners
26: Juan Soto, OF, Mets
There are so many superstars to choose from at this age that elite pitchers such as Garrett Crochet and Hunter Brown didn’t even make our top three. This was a nearly impossible choice, considering the options, but we’ll go with Soto, who has had the spotlight on him all year and hasn’t wilted.
Runners-Up: Fernando Tatis Jr., OF, Padres; Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B, Blue Jays
27: Ronald Acuña Jr., OF, Braves
Even with the injuries, he’s still the clear pick. But those injuries are starting to pick away at some of those career counting stats.
Runners-Up: Jeremy Peña, SS, Astros; William Contreras, C, Brewers
28: Tarik Skubal, SP, Tigers
He has a chance to win the AL Pitching Triple Crown again this year. He hasn’t been quite as good as last year. And he still is better than everybody else.
Runners-Up: Cal Raleigh, C, Mariners; Kyle Tucker, OF, Cubs
29: Joe Ryan, SP, Twins
This has been a thin age for a few years now – last year’s pick was Dylan Cease – so we may just have to keep going with the hottest pitcher of the moment.
Runners-Up: Freddy Peralta, SP, Brewers; Cody Bellinger, OF, Yankees
30: Shohei Ohtani, DH/SP, Dodgers
Has there ever been a 30-year-old better than this, ever? And he’ll be pitching full-bore soon, too.
Runners-Up: Will Smith, C, Dodgers; Pete Alonso, 1B, Mets
31: Francisco Lindor, SS, Mets
He’s not quite at last year’s numbers just yet, but he has been hot lately and is clearly the heart and soul of this team … and still one of the most fun players in the game to watch.
Runners-Up: Corey Seager, SS, Rangers; Ketel Marte, 2B, Diamondbacks
32: José Ramírez, 3B, Guardians
Is he a Hall of Famer yet? He’s got to be close. J-Ram leaps into the top spot after Mookie Betts’ down year.
Runners-Up: Mookie Betts, SS, Dodgers; Bryce Harper, 1B, Phillies
33: Aaron Judge, OF, Yankees
He’s always a little bit older than you think he is. He also still makes history every time he comes to the plate.
Runners-Up: Christian Yelich, OF, Brewers; Mike Trout, DH, Angels
34: Marcus Semien, 2B, Rangers
He has rebounded somewhat from his slow start, though he’ll be out for the rest of the year with a broken left foot. He takes over the top spot with Gerrit Cole recovering from Tommy John surgery for all of 2025.
Runners-Up: Gerrit Cole, SP, Yankees; Max Muncy, IF, Dodgers
35: Freddie Freeman, 1B, Dodgers
Like a lot of Dodgers veterans, his numbers are down a little this year. Also like a lot of Dodgers veterans, he’s still better than just about everybody out there.
Runners-Up: George Springer, OF, Blue Jays; Zack Wheeler, SP, Phillies
36: Chris Sale, SP, Braves
The injury issues that cost him so much throughout his career have popped up again this year, but he finally got that Cy Young Award in 2024.
Runners-Up: Merrill Kelly, SP, Rangers; Jose Quintana, SP, Brewers
37: Jacob deGrom, SP, Rangers
Now this is what happens when deGrom can actually get back out on the mound.
Runners-Up: Aroldis Chapman, RP, Red Sox; Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, Yankees
38: Andrew McCutchen, OF, Pirates
He’s still out there, one of the best hitters on the Pirates, as long as they will have him.
Runners-Up: Yu Darvish, SP, Padres; Kirby Yates, RP, Dodgers
39: Carlos Santana, 1B, free agent
The worst year of Santana’s career ended with the Guardians releasing him, but he can still get on base at or above the league average; someone will probably give him one last ride down the stretch.
Runner-Up: Chris Martin, RP, Rangers
40: Max Scherzer, SP, Blue Jays
He’s setting himself up to start a playoff game … or several.
Runners-Up: Justin Turner, IF, Cubs; David Robertson, RP, Phillies
41: Charlie Morton, SP, Tigers
He turned things around enough in Baltimore to be a key Trade Deadline acquisition for Detroit.
42: Justin Verlander, SP, Giants
He may not make it to 300 wins. But he’s not hurting his legacy any as he approaches the end.
45: Rich Hill, SP, free agent
Always, and forever.
