Baseball players tend to play a little longer than other sports in the United States, it is normal to see an MLB player who is 35 or 38 years old still playing for a team, but in other sports such as Basketball and Soccer it is less common, and in the NFL very few are lucky enough to be active at that age.
Adam Wainwright is one of those ‘grandpas’ who are still playing baseball at their highest level in the MLB, but apart from him and the other players in their forties there are a large number of players between 38 and 39 years of age.
One of the oldest players who was active until recently was Bartolo Colon, he is still playing pro baseball but in Mexico, he was not signed by any MLB team in 2022.
Who are the five oldest players in the MLB in 2022?
Pujols of Cards
1. Albert Pujols is the ‘grandfather’ of the MLB in 2022, he was born on January 16, 1980, Pujols is 42 years and 114 days old. Pujols is also a member of the 3,000 hit club.
Hill of Red Sox
2. Rich Hill is slightly younger than Pujols as Hill is 42 years and 60 days old, he was born on March 11, 1980. Hill is currently playing for the Boston Red Rox.
Nelson Cruz of Nationals
3. Nelson Cruz is an old-known right fielder and hitter, he was born in the Dominican Republic on July 1, 1981, Cruz is 41 years and 313 days old. Before playing for the Nationals, Cruz played for seven other MLB teams.
Oliver Perez of Arizona Diamondbacks
4. Oliver Perez spent time playing in Mexico, but now he is back to play his 20th season in the MLB, Perez is 40 years and 268 days old. He was born in Culiacan, Mexico on August 15, 1981.
Adam Wainwright of Cardinals
5. Adam Wainwright is the youngster of the bunch at 40 years and 253 days, Wainwright is also the oldest highest paid player on the list with an annual salary of $17.5m.