I would take Mantle since he played against tougher competition... Mantle's career coincided with the all-too-gradual integration of the "major leagues" and population growth that increased the potential pool of major league players....also more foreign born players especially Latin Americans were drawn into americas premier leagues -- the NL and the AL. The `spread of the majors from the northeast and the midwest across the entire US in the late 1950's also meant that the best players were no longer content to stay in the PCL or other regional leagues.
None of that's part of the statistical comparison exercise though.
I think that one of the reasons Mantle is increasingly regarded as being "greater" than DiMaggio is simply the declining number of living people who saw DiMaggio play or experienced him as something other than a handsome legend who doubled as "Mr. Coffee." DiMaggio's grace on the field and his persona as the the Yankee Clipper were integral to his greatness. This not really captured by the stats..His statistical legacy is mainly the 56-game streak.
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