Joe DiMaggio: The Final Chapter

[KeepRockin55]

Hey LaSorda you're AMERICAN, not Italian. Whats up with these Italians, been living in America for generations and call themselves Italians, not Americans. Pisses me off. My Great-Grandparents were Polish but I'm American!

[BurmaBoxer]

There isn't a baseball player today with Joe's charisma or class. When he was off the field - suit and tie - always watched his language, just a great role model for boys growing up. The Yankee Clipper? Sure. But I think he was The Classy Clipper!

[whitesox2005ify]

Ted Williamson was better hitter but Joe Dimaggio was better all round player.

[wonglee2424]

of the two players who was the best Barry Bonds or Joe Dimaggio?

[thrillaking510]

@wonglee2424 sports evolve over time, especially baseball....not saying dimaggio sucks but he would do horrible against today's pitchers, like holladay, cliff lee, lincecum, etc... and bonds would murder the pitchers from back then...in my opinion i think bonds is better than dimaggio, and im probably going to get a lot of hate for saying that but oh well

[trajan75]

@thrillaking510 You're making an impossible argument, Ballplayers don't exist in a time warp. They play in a specific era. How would DiMaggio do against today's pitchers if they had to pitch 9 innings? If they had to work during the off season to support themselves? They wouldn't be the same pitchers. Suppose DiMaggio or Williams or Musial had the advantages of today's technology enhanced training. How would Bonds do if pitchers could knock him down if he crowded the plate?

[JimmyPage97]

@wonglee2424 of two who needed drugs to enhance their performance?

[wonglee2424]

@JimmyPage97 Bravo

[JimmyPage97]

@wonglee2424 yup its a shame. But like most things looking to find genuine talent and such you need to look in the past.

[whitesox2005ify]

@wonglee2424

Joe Dimaggio over Bonds any given they, Bonds that good of all round Baseball player.

[falcotje]

Rest in peace Joe we still love you

[Dimaggio5641]

Joe is still a hero to every paisan

Riposi in pace Joe DiMaggio

[Agalynet]

Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio?

[alejito1996]

great player.. one of the best

[okinawanboy100]

Rest in Peace Joltin' Joe dimaggio

[wilzusuki]

he swing is too agressive

[frankjfalco]

@wilzusuki

Too aggressive?! The guy hit 361 times and only struck out 369 times!! A ratio of 1 to 1! Compare that strike out rate to anyone, no matter how good, and they pale in comparison. Barry Bonds? 762 homers and 1539 K's. Ted Williams? 521 homers and 709 strikeouts and those numbers are amazing. Albert Pujols? 415 dingers and 661 strikeouts. Willie Mays? Manny Ramirez? Lou Gehrig? Don't ask... Too aggressive?! If anything you could claim he wasn't aggressive enough...

[brianwells456comcast]

@frankjfalco If he didn`t have to deal with vast "death valley" out in left-center of old Yankee Stadium,Dimaggio would have had a lot more homers than strikeouts.Still cannot believe how he only struck out 13 times in 541 at bats in 1941!(almost as impressive as the 56 game hitting streak that year).Hell,Adam Dunn strikes out that many times every 48 hours.Old timers say that most of his hits(as well as his outs)were hit very sharply.

[xDangerousDisasterx]

I'm related to him. My grandma's maiden name was Maggio. (: I'm very proud to be related to him. (:

[keagleman21]

Among his many amazing feats in his career, DiMaggio has one of the most amazing stats a hitter could ever have. He had more home runs than strike outs in 7 of his 13 seasons. That is an awesome stat for a power hitter and one that no one has ever come close to. The next best for a power hitter is Ted Williams who did it 3 times in 19 seasons.

For example - 1941 the year of his 56 game streak, DiMaggio hit 31 homers and struck out only 13 times! I'm no Joe D. fan, but this is an amazing stat.

[Kr3W06able]

I met joe at a newark airport and got his autograph when i was 14 , he was a great and nice person ..

[TonyLyndellWilliams]

Mantle was faster, hit both ways with more power than DiMaggio.

DiMaggio was a better fielder, but Mantle had a stronger arm.

Mantle was better, and DiMaggio was great.

Tony

[usmctanks1]

I think that Joe Dimaggio set himself a standard, and did everything to keep that standard, including being "closed" to most (if not all ) people not directly involved with his standard keeping focus. included but not limited to, being the "greatest living NYY baseball player" etc. Which froze him from any "deep" relationship (with men or women). Sad really, but his name will forever remembered, for good or bad

[Aidooosh]

he was such a cutie :)

[RapMetalFan1]

He is a Legend.And the Song is very cool by the Way.Joe Joe Dimaggio...

[Hoontasan]

@RapMetalFan1 He was a selfish prick.

[DWareFTW]

he wasnt the most attractive guy in the world though haha

[Hoontasan]

@DWareFTW No he was one ugly fuck that's for sure.

[wilzusuki]

NOBODY CAN HIT 56 GAME STREAK TODAY

[Willster54321]

@ruggs1515 hey i wanna b the next nolan ryan but is that ever gonna happen?

[5CX1500]

I must agree w/ joedimaggiosgirl. I met Joe when I was 6 yrs old on June 21, 1959 at of all places, a Howard Johnson's restaurant on the Connecticut Turnpike. I had just begun my lifelong addiction to the "pinstripe empire" and as was my custom in those days (and still is now, when I can get away with it) I was wearing my beloved NYY's cap. Joe noticed this and asked the waitress to send me to his table. He signed a receipt for me and asked me about my "ball career".What a guy! I was 6!

[Hoontasan]

@5CX1500 I'm surprised he didn't ask you to pay for his meal. Dimaggio was the cheapest mother fucker in the country.

[sloppyoscar]

I like how he pivots his hips shortly before the ball arrives, allowing his whole upper body to twist around and follow through -- his line drives must have been screamers

[jfkymarilynmonroefan]

Marilyn Monroe and Joe dimaggio love forever

[fiddlenut24]

if mickey mantle thinks joe was the best that good enough for me

[Hoontasan]

@fiddlenut24 Mantle said that because he was a humble person. Joe on the other hand would say that Joe was the greatest because Dimaggio was a prick. I'd take Mantle of Dimaggio any day.

[fiddlenut24]

@Hoontasan I'm talking about his abilities as a ball player, not his social skills,which were definitely questionable. If mantle had taken better care of himself, he probably would have broken every record in baseball.

[ohiostmarine29203]

@fiddlenut24 Amen there

[sigu655]

DiMaggio hit 361 homers and struck out 369 times TOTAL, in his 14 years of playing ball. 369!! Wow! Guys nowadays strike out 369 times in a week!

[dubualex]

i love the sound of his bat!!

[myreymg3]

ya hes my cuzz for real.

[tebonz]

it will never be like that again. ;(

[lakerssuckballs]

yes the guy was a dick but who cares he could rake!

[usmctanks1]

I think Joe was a very lonely man, and I also think he knew his value (see his hold outs early in his career) and also knew how much money was made OFF his name, so if you wanted him, you paid him... In this he was ahead of his time I think.

[yahwhous]

Yes, fair point about holding out and recognizing his worth.

The greediness later in life when he was already very rich is harder to explain. As you say, a very lonely man.

I'm a Yankee fan, but like Ted Williams more. Ted could be abrasive, but devoted himself to the Jimmy fund, praised other players like Gwynn, cared about the game of baseball and its future and was never trying to put on an act. For all his talent, all Joe D cared about was himself.

[joedimaggiosgirl]

Joe Dimaggio was tight lipped about all aspects of his life, including his generosity. During his playing days he quiety gave money to a cancer charity started by Walter Winchell(and he HATED Walter Winchell). Years later, Joe gave hundreds of thousands of dollars to build the Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, now considered one of the finest pediatric hopsitals in the nation. BTY I am a life long Red Sox fan.

[joedimaggiosgirl]

P.S. I'm just so frustrated over the misconceptions and flat out lies perpetrated by authors such as Richard Ben Creamer and Kahn, not to mention the endless regurgatation of falacies put out by Monroe biographers. DiMag was a complex human being , fa from perfect, but research shows he wasn't the greedy, jealous man he is often portrayed as by lazy writers. Someone needs to write a biography about himw hich blows away all of the misconceptions.

[sigu655]

Teddy Baseball was awesome that way too...

[all66books]

Like a number of baseballs superstars of that time, Joe D's career was derailed somewhat by WW2.

While the DiMaggio of '46 & after was pretty darned good, the Pre-WW2 DiMaggio was a beast.

[RobynHode8]

Joe was a great player. Not in Mays' category, but who was? Clutch hitter, graceful outfielder, he was treated like a king in NYC. He was a little full of himself and he neglected his wives by going out too much. As for the other stuff, Halberstam was probably right, but read Roger Kahn too.

[pacifictrout]

he was better than mays.

[slovakzolee87]

who is Mays? i am european.

[yahwhous]

He didn't just neglect his wife. He barely spoke to his son or his brothers later in life. He was arrogant even with other players.

When Bernie Williams, his successor in center field for the Yankees, asked him for an autograph in the clubhouse, he refused.

(I can't even listen to that windbag Roger Kahn--on the old Dodgers, DiMaggio or any other subject.)

As for baseball, I'd take Mays or a healthy Mantle over DiMaggio for my team.

[NYYROCK]

dimaggio over mays and mantle

[yahwhous]

Fine, if you're a Yankee koolaid drinker.

I'm a Yankee fan, but I'd call Mays-Dimaggio even in hitting, roughly even in fielding (Mays was more dramatic, not necessarily better) but Mays had a better arm and was faster on the bases.

Never forget, Dimaggio and other players until the 1950s were not playing against the best competition. Blacks (including darker latinos) were excluded, watering down the talent level, including the pitching. Not his fault, but has to be taken into account.

[NYYROCK]

yah but i see your point but dimaggio was a righty hitting to a wall 480 feet away and still had more home runs than strikeouts but i have to disagree on fielding i think dimaggio had the abililty to always get a good jump on a ball and NEVER need to dive he didnt make the great plays that people consider amazing because on a ball that man people need to dive he was always there

[patthecatman]

dimag played at a time that wasn't exactly prime conditions...vast outfield fences that were pulled in for modern sluggers; cramped train travel;spectre of war service; no batting helmets' no batting gloves; i could name more. dimag's arm? one of the best and strongest; he once threw out a runner from fairly deep center at home on the fly. in his prime, he was always high on the list in assists. his catch of lieber's ''36 series' shot in the polo grounds was astounding.

[yahwhous]

Not exactly prime conditions? The 1930s produced the highest offensive totals before the steroid era. During that period Gehrig, Greenberg and Hack Wilson all hit 170 or more RBIs.

Most of their careers, Mays and Mantle also played without helmets and gloves.

DiMaggio was very good--and had the benefit of playing on a great team with a great pitching staff . Also played in the media capital. If he'd put up all the same numbers for Kansas City or the Browns he'd be largely forgotten.

[patthecatman]

by modern baseball, i mean say, from 1980 on. true, in reaction to the depression, the ball was indeed livened up during the early 30's. i know full well mantle & mays played w/o helmets. since their time, baseball has, more & more, become a laughable farce for the reasons i listed , in part, above. oh yeah, and despite the souped up ball of the early 30's, grove & dean each won 30 games.. end of story

[yahwhous]

You seem to have a problem evaluating raw statistics.

Grove and Dean won 30 games in the 1930s because they had many more starts than pitchers today--they pitched on 3 days rest, not 4 and were expected to finish most games. (And because the lively ball also helped their own teams score more runs for them!)

They were great, as was Hubbell, but you can't compare the wins per season then to now. (Pitching on 3 days rest also burned out lesser pitchers very quickly.)

Best wishes.

[patthecatman]

oh, c'mon!! problem evaluating raw stats? mine speak for themselves. i'll take pre-80's baseball any day, which is why i've totally switched off on current bb. no continuity, so artificial, with all the dumb equipment (batting gloves, helmets, etc.) in case u have a prob w/ the above "continuity", that means the incessant shuttling around of talent esp to richer teams. it just ain't a sport anymore; yeah there was trading done earlier but not comparable to now.

[spenney007]

Very Good Ball Player In His Time......In Person He Was An Asshole .

[SNLGGTORTS]

what are you talking about?!

no he totally wasn't!

[yahwhous]

Dimaggio was a great player (almost as good as Mays) but not a nice guy. He physically abused Marilyn Monroe, would not sign autographs except for money (even though he had millions), insisted on being introduced as the "greatest living ballplayer" and was cold and unhelpful to Mickey Mantle when they played together. As David Halberstam put it, he spent his retirement polishing his own statue.

If he'd played for KC who would care. But the Yankees won--thanks to their pitching more than Joe D

[slovakzolee87]

what means KC??????sorry iam not a big expert.

[yahwhous]

Kansas City (Athletics). They were one of the weakest teams in the American League at that time.

[JKB449]

One hick of player.

Joe D in my top 10.

From Jason Burdettte

[ziggens19]

just lookin at joe's stats alone u can argue that he was the best player of all time, hes my favorite baseball player of all time one of my heros along w/ MJ. he was jus a true professional...now im gettin all teary eyed.Lol

[luch76]

he's not even a .300 hitter dude!........

[bango31]

He hit .325 for his career.

[Ninety2q]

HAHA, thats right, he wasn't a .300 hitter, he hit 25 points higher then .300, idiot

[otto3391]

check out my dads documentary type in michael's basement

[andrenyc]

Pure Sicilian blood right there. Dio Mio.

[whitewitch8]

Thanks very much. This is terrific and I appreciate it.

[israperz3308]

It's too bad Daggo was not in the Tv era, or else he would've been the greatest of his time, so few videos we have of him compared to mantle, this ballplayers now dont have anything on Joltin' Joe P. Di'Maggio. arad sucks ass, papi sucs ass, jeter sucks ass, all this players now days suck ass!!!! Daggo De messiah of baseball and the Yankees

[havok334]

yea okay your better then Jeter im sure

[israperz3308]

jeter is good, but not as Daggo, and u know it mate, are u a sox fan or a mets fan?

[havok334]

Im a phillies fan im from New Jersey but i'm im WA right now but i still have the package to see the games they play the mets today i hope that they win. I dont see the phillies loosing to the mets in the long run. I believe people should like their home team nothing i can't stand more then a Cowboys fan that lives all the way in New Jersey

[israperz3308]

a model, an example, elegant, everything he did was towards winning a ballgame, Today my heart is breaking seen yankee stadium close its doors, letting the ghosts of past years get the laughters at the mediocre team we've got now days. in the Daggo era, we would've won the world series, now we cant even make it to october. I wish another italian comes out to carry the yankees on his shoulders like Di'Maggio did, (dimaggio was our atlas carrying our team to glory)

[israperz3308]

i would trade 20 A-Rod for only 1 joe Dimaggio, jolttin joe the best in post-season

long live the great Daggo

[autobod8]

who can argue w mickey and  the yog

[brunettemarilyn09]

wow he was really cute. Can see why Marilyn loved him

[fiddlenut24]

well if mickey mantle says he was the best, i wont disagree with him.

[KingofKings260]

the 3 outta 10 qoute.. who did that come from?

i was readin baseball qoutes an saw that.

but joe dimiggio.

my model to.

he is honestly one the best baseball player ever. im 16 playin for a team that isnt known for winnin. but we got talent this year and were gonna give people hell.

[ruggs1515]

The best all-round baseball player that ever lived. He's my model. i'm 15 and trying to become the next Joe DiMaggio. everybody says i look like him so,now, im going to play like him.

[hyiop5]

i wish i could be 15 and have time on my side, never give up young one, play the game anywhere u can even if its minor league play with all your heart, play the right way ull be great

[ruggs1515]

Thank you so much. I think that is the nicest comment anybody has ever sent me. I will play my hardest and never give up. Thank you so much again.

[hyiop5]

No prob . honestly along the way u are going to run into ppl who will tell u , you can t do it, ppl who will try as hard as they can to take you away from your dream, never let their messages take to ur heart.the heart of a ballplayer is one which knows how hard this game really is, 3 out of 10 gets u in the hall of fame no where else is it like that. I do hope you will always have peace and happiness out in the field

[pnebenzahl]

Do it!

[dimaggio1324yeah]

@ruggs1515 Hahah.

But you need his name.

I have it.

You fail.

Faggot.

[Hoontasan]

@ruggs1515 If you want to be like Joe Dimaggio you're going to have to become a huge asshole because that's what he was. I feel sorry for you if you look like him because he was one ugly fuck.

[nerdflanders8710]

@ruggs1515 youre an idiot

[ruggs1515]

@nerdflanders8710 First of all.... Fuck you for insulting me like that. Second of all... Fuck you for being an asshole. I didnt ask for your opinion bitch

[nerdflanders8710]

@ruggs1515 yes well , you're still an idiot. talking your stupid shit , stfu homo.

[liefur]

@ruggs1515 hey kid... shut your mouth