The Youngest and Oldest Players On MLB Opening Day Rosters In 2023
Image credit: Ezequiel Tovar (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images)
The average age of an active player on an MLB Opening Day roster was 29.33 years old. The median age of players on Opening Day rosters was 28.88. But as always, there’s a new wave of youngsters who have many years before they reach that average.
Jordan Walker, the youngest player on an Opening Day roster, won’t reach the median age of a big leaguer until 2031.
Here’s our look at the youngest and oldest players on MLB Opening Day rosters.
The AL East is a wonderland of young shortstops, as the three youngest players in the American League are all starting shortstops in that division. Maybe the most remarkable appearance on this Top 25 is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. This is Guerrero’s fifth season in the major leagues, but he remains the 16th youngest player on an AL Opening Day roster.
| AMERICAN LEAGUE | |||||
| Rk | Player | POS | TEAM | Age | DOB |
| 1 | Gunnar Henderson | SS | Baltimore Orioles | 21.75 | 6/29/2001 |
| 2 | Anthony Volpe | SS | New York Yankees | 21.92 | 4/28/2001 |
| 3 | Wander Franco | SS | Tampa Bay Rays | 22.08 | 3/1/2001 |
| 4 | Julio Rodriguez | CF | Seattle Mariners | 22.25 | 12/29/2000 |
| 5 | Riley Greene | CF | Detroit Tigers | 22.50 | 9/28/2000 |
| 6 | Bobby Witt | SS | Kansas City Royals | 22.79 | 6/14/2000 |
| 7 | Gabriel Arias | 2B | Cleveland Guardians | 23.09 | 2/27/2000 |
| 8 | Logan O’Hoppe | C | Los Angeles Angels | 23.13 | 2/9/2000 |
| 9 | Triston Casas | 1B | Boston Red Sox | 23.20 | 1/15/2000 |
| 10 | Mason Englert | RHP | Detroit Tigers | 23.41 | 11/1/1999 |
| 11 | Gregory Santos | RHP | Chicago White Sox | 23.59 | 8/28/1999 |
| 12 | Spencer Torkelson | 1B | Detroit Tigers | 23.59 | 8/26/1999 |
| 13 | Jarred Kelenic | LF | Seattle Mariners | 23.70 | 7/16/1999 |
| 14 | Reid Detmers | LHP | Los Angeles Angels | 23.73 | 7/8/1999 |
| 15 | Ezequiel Duran | 3B | Texas Rangers | 23.85 | 5/22/1999 |
| 16 | Vladimir Guerrero | 1B | Toronto Blue Jays | 24.04 | 3/16/1999 |
| 17 | Oswaldo Cabrera | 3B | New York Yankees | 24.08 | 3/1/1999 |
| 18 | Isaac Paredes | 3B | Tampa Bay Rays | 24.11 | 2/18/1999 |
| 19 | Esteury Ruiz | CF | Oakland Athletics | 24.12 | 2/15/1999 |
| 20 | Andres Munoz | RHP | Seattle Mariners | 24.20 | 1/16/1999 |
| 21 | MJ Melendez | C | Kansas City Royals | 24.33 | 11/28/1998 |
| 22 | Andres Gimenez | 2B | Cleveland Guardians | 24.57 | 9/4/1998 |
| 23 | Xzavion Curry | RHP | Cleveland Guardians | 24.67 | 7/27/1998 |
| 24 | Josh Winckowski | RHP | Boston Red Sox | 24.75 | 6/28/1998 |
| 25 | Hunter Gaddis | RHP | Cleveland Guardians | 24.97 | 4/9/1998 |
If the AL’s youngest list is dominated by shortstops, it’s the outfielders, and especially the center fielders, that are notable on the National League list. Jordan Walker not only is in the top spot as the youngest in the NL, he’s nine months younger than any other player in the majors on Opening Day.
| NATIONAL LEAGUE | |||||
| Rk | Player | POS | TEAM | Age | DOB |
| 1 | Jordan Walker | LF | St. Louis Cardinals | 20.85 | 5/22/2002 |
| 2 | Ezequiel Tovar | SS | Colorado Rockies | 21.66 | 8/1/2001 |
| 3 | Michael Harris | CF | Atlanta Braves | 22.06 | 3/7/2001 |
| 4 | CJ Abrams | SS | Washington Nationals | 22.49 | 10/3/2000 |
| 5 | Corbin Carroll | CF | Arizona Diamondbacks | 22.60 | 8/21/2000 |
| 6 | Luis Garcia | 2B | Washington Nationals | 22.87 | 5/16/2000 |
| 7 | Nolan Gorman | 3B | St. Louis Cardinals | 22.89 | 5/10/2000 |
| 8 | Alek Thomas | CF | Arizona Diamondbacks | 22.92 | 4/28/2000 |
| 9 | Gabriel Moreno | C | Arizona Diamondbacks | 23.12 | 2/14/2000 |
| 10 | Ryan Weathers | LHP | San Diego Padres | 23.28 | 12/17/1999 |
| 11 | Brice Turang | SS | Milwaukee Brewers | 23.35 | 11/21/1999 |
| 12 | Miguel Vargas | 2B | Los Angeles Dodgers | 23.36 | 11/17/1999 |
| 13 | Roansy Contreras | RHP | Pittsburgh Pirates | 23.39 | 11/7/1999 |
| 14 | Geraldo Perdomo | SS | Arizona Diamondbacks | 23.44 | 10/22/1999 |
| 15 | Carlos Vargas | RHP | Arizona Diamondbacks | 23.46 | 10/13/1999 |
| 16 | Hunter Greene | RHP | Cincinnati Reds | 23.65 | 8/6/1999 |
| 17 | Ji-Hwan Bae | 2B | Pittsburgh Pirates | 23.68 | 7/26/1999 |
| 18 | Rodolfo Castro | 2B | Pittsburgh Pirates | 23.86 | 5/21/1999 |
| 19 | Brett Wisely | SS | San Francisco Giants | 23.89 | 5/8/1999 |
| 20 | Canaan Smith-Njigba | RF | Pittsburgh Pirates | 23.92 | 4/30/1999 |
| 21 | Spencer Strider | RHP | Atlanta Braves | 24.42 | 10/28/1998 |
| 22 | Elehuris Montero | 3B | Colorado Rockies | 24.62 | 8/17/1998 |
| 23 | Jared Shuster | LHP | Atlanta Braves | 24.65 | 8/3/1998 |
| 24 | Will Benson | CF | Cincinnati Reds | 24.79 | 6/16/1998 |
| 25 | Jose Barrero | SS | Cincinnati Reds | 24.98 | 4/5/1998 |
Here’s a look at the oldest players in the AL.
| AMERICAN LEAGUE | |||||
| Rk | Player | POS | TEAM | Age | DOB |
| 1 | Caleb Thielbar | LHP | Minnesota Twins | 36.16 | 1/31/1987 |
| 2 | Jose Abreu | 1B | Houston Astros | 36.16 | 1/29/1987 |
| 3 | Jake Diekman | LHP | Chicago White Sox | 36.19 | 1/21/1987 |
| 4 | Martin Maldonado | C | Houston Astros | 36.62 | 8/16/1986 |
| 5 | Chris Martin | RHP | Boston Red Sox | 36.82 | 6/2/1986 |
| 6 | Josh Donaldson | 3B | New York Yankees | 37.31 | 12/8/1985 |
| 7 | Ian Kennedy | RHP | Texas Rangers | 38.28 | 12/19/1984 |
| 8 | Justin Turner | 1B | Boston Red Sox | 38.35 | 11/23/1984 |
| 9 | Zack Greinke | RHP | Kansas City Royals | 39.44 | 10/21/1983 |
| 10 | Miguel Cabrera | DH | Detroit Tigers | 39.95 | 4/18/1983 |
And here’s a look at the 10 oldest players in the National League. All three players on Opening Day rosters who are 40 years old or older reside in the NL.
| NATIONAL LEAGUE | |||||
| Rk | Player | POS | TEAM | Age | DOB |
| 1 | Matt Carpenter | 1B | San Diego Padres | 37.34 | 11/26/1985 |
| 2 | Adam Ottavino | RHP | New York Mets | 37.35 | 11/22/1985 |
| 3 | David Robertson | RHP | New York Mets | 37.97 | 4/9/1985 |
| 4 | Max Scherzer | RHP | New York Mets | 38.67 | 7/27/1984 |
| 5 | Yuli Gurriel | 1B | Miami Marlins | 38.80 | 6/9/1984 |
| 6 | Charlie Morton | RHP | Atlanta Braves | 39.38 | 11/12/1983 |
| 7 | Jesse Chavez | RHP | Atlanta Braves | 39.61 | 8/21/1983 |
| 8 | Justin Verlander | RHP | New York Mets | 40.10 | 2/20/1983 |
| 9 | Nelson Cruz | DH | San Diego Padres | 42.74 | 7/1/1980 |
| 10 | Rich Hill | LHP | Pittsburgh Pirates | 43.05 | 3/11/1980 |
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