Today's Birthday Team is going to need everything it can get from that pitching staff because it's not going to get much from the offense.

C/Manager: Bob Melvin (2.5 WAR)
1B: Tommy Tucker (25.3 WAR)
2B: Tim Bogar (1.9 WAR)
3B: Luis Marquez (4.0 WAR)
SS: Doc Lavan (9.3 WAR)
LF: Hurley McNair (22.3 WAR)
CF: Nate McLouth (6.5 WAR)
RF: Lloyd Davenport (4.2 WAR)

SP: Juan Guzman (24.3 WAR)
SP: Bob Veale (21.9 WAR)
SP: Piano Mover Frank Smith (22.1 WAR)
SP: Johnny Rigney (20.1 WAR)
SP: Braden Looper (8.2 WAR)
RP: Sammy Stewart (9.9 WAR)

Jumped from the Florida State League at age 19 to the 2003 Tigers at age 20, which went about as well as you'd expect: Jeremy Bonderman (4.9 WAR)
Fun names: Rudy Rufer, Hank Boney, Roxy Snipes, Liz Funk, Benny Bowcock
Pinch hitter: Lenny Harris (1.7 WAR)
In the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame for building the Tokyo Dome: Makoto Hosaka

I think Robert Creamer's biography quoted a review that allowed the Babe "a not unpleasant baritone." My guess is that the median person used to sing better than he or she would today. Without electronics, people probably sang every day and learned to complement others.

First, let me say that I'm not complaining about the lack of dugouts and associated birthday teams. I really enjoy them and it's fun to see who can make their birthday team. But since it was Juan Soto's birthday on Monday, I took a look at the 10/25 team. This is probably incomplete. This team is pretty good and my gut feeling is that it is going to improve over the next few years.

c - Marty Bergen (Bill's brother) (.9)
1b - Jack Doyle (25.9)
2b - Andy Cohen (2.9) / Bobby Brown
3b - Bobby Brown (6.8) / Bobby Thomson
ss - Roy Smalley (27.9)
lf - Al Cowens (15.2) / Smoky Joe Wood (when not pitching)
cf - Bobby Thomson (33.8) / Al Cowens
rf - Juan Soto (17.5)

sp - Pedro Martinez (83.9)
sp - Smoky Joe Wood (29.5 pitching, 10.5 batting)
sp - Danny Darwin (39.8)
sp - Vic Aldridge (17.2)
sp - Russ Meyer (not that one) (9.3)
rp - Andy McGaffigan (10.3)

manager - ?

McNair (and Davenport and Marquez) is a welcome addition to this team from the NeL. McNair's 22 WAR came in few games so also comes with 12 WAA so he's quite possibly the best position player on this team (Tucker 25 WAR, 2 WAA in the 19th c).