Who was better, who would you take, Joe DiMaggio or Ted Williams?

[itjclarke]

Originally Posted by Eric72

Personally, I would take DiMaggio.

Williams may lay claim to the best hitter of all time, or maybe second best behind Ruth. However, his fielding was not nearly so good.

DiMaggio excelled in all aspects of the game.

I agree. Though I've always liked Williams more, his crazy bad ass military record included (flew combat in the same squadron as astronaut John Glenn!!), I'd have to take Joe D's all around game. If I could know in advance Williams would play into his 40s, I'd probably change my mind.. But if we're talking peak 5-7 years, or basing this on a GM making a decision at the beginning of their careers, its Joe D. DiMaggio by all accounts was a tremendous outfielder, and playing center made him the anchor of that outfield. Too much value added there to overlook.

[rhettyeakley]

Isn't it always that whoever is the best Yankee at the time is the greatest living baseball player by the media and fans of the period (of whom a majority are/were Yankee fans)...

Babe Ruth (probably accurate) followed by Lou Gehrig, followed by Joe DiMaggio, followed by Mickey Mantle, then some lean years, followed by Don Mattingly for a short time, followed by Derek Jeter!

Joe benefitted from being a media darling in the media center of the world, while the same didn't hold true for Williams. Williams started out as a surly guy, Joe just died that way.