The Next Great Joe
The name Joe brings a certain prestige and elegance along with it. The name Joe is often synonymous with excellence in sports. The name Joe rhymes with many things that bring humor to me. All humor aside, there have been countless great Joe’s in the wide world of sports.
Just use your imagination and make a quick list of your favorite Sports Joe’s. I’ll wait here….
My short list of my top Sports Joe’s is rather epic. Sorry to disappoint some of the staunch republications that follow 40ozsports, but Joe the Plumber did not make the cut. Neither did Joesph Addai, Joe Dumars, Joe Nedney, Joe(y) Harrington or Joe Girardi. You’re probably wondering who is left…
- Shoeless Joe - Career average of .356 and portrayed beautifully by Ray Liotta in Field of Dreams. Unfortunately, known more as a cheater and for disappearing in the corn fields then his on-field play.
- Joe Louis - Heavyweight champ for over 11 consecutive years. A social activist during tumultuous times and has an arena in Detroit named after him.
- Joe DiMaggio- Joltin Joe, Number 5, Joe D. DiMaggio’s career although shorter then most of the greats still was legendary. Batting .381 with 30 hrs, 126 rbis while striking out only 20 times in a season is mind boggling. His affinity for Marilyn Monore after her Happy Birthday Mr. President dance, is also mind boggling.
- Joe Crawford - The longest tenured and most bald current NBA referee. Crawford is most well known for his fake fight of Tim Duncan and his no call on the obvious foul of Brent Barry in the 08 playoffs.
- Joe(y) Chestnut - An American icon. Brought the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating belt back to its rightful place in the increasingly overweight United States! Take that Kobayashi!
These Joe’s are phenomenal and great warriors in their own right. But, there is a new Joe in town. Joe Mauer, the celebrated catcher of the Minnesota Twins has begun to cement his own legacy. This legacy goes way beyond just his given birth name.
At the young age of 26, Joe Mauer has just won his 3rd American League Batting Title. Not only did he lead the league in batting average, but he led the league in On-base percentage (.444) and slugging percentage (.587). Combine those numbers with 28 dingers and 98 rbis after missing a month of the season. Not to mention that his position, catcher, is not always known for offense. Just ask John Flaherty, Sal Fasano and Wil Nieves.
Catchers are known for their receiving (no homo) and calling pitches. On top of his great offense, Mauer also has won a gold glove for his defensive prowess. Mauer is Minnesota born and raised and is absolutely adored by the Twinkie fanatics. He turned down a football scholarship to play quarterback for Florida State to pursue his dream to play for his home-town Twins. His favorite hobby outside of baseball is riding a tractor on his large estate. I’m sure he goes hunting and has a log cabin as well. He seems like a regular dude from Minnesota with great sideburns.
Mauer is set to win his first AL MVP this year and carried the Twins past the Tigers to face off with the Yankees in the ALDS. Joe’s greatness can never be questioned and his accomplishments over the first 6 years of his career can never be tarnished. But, the big question is will Joe Mauer stay in Minnesota? He is set to become a free agent after 2010 and would command in the area of $200 million dollars on the open market. But, Joe has long stated he wants to stay in Minnesota and help bring a title to his hometown.
The Twins were recently rumored to offer Joe a 7 year deal worth around $120 million. Obviously $120 million dollars is a inordinate amount of Benjamins. But, $200 million can make staying in Minnesota a difficult decision. I want to believe Joe Mauer and his love and passion for riding tractors and shooting deer. If all of the things he has said along the way are true, then take the $120 mill and stay in Minnesota. Be the contrarian and show us it’s not about the money. It would be a refreshing change of pace and make people think athletes aren’t all selfish and greedy. But, who are we kidding, it’s always about the money…
15 Responses to “The Next Great Joe”
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this could be the greatest web site of all times!
Hi Ryan,
Love the article. Very cool thought and good work with Joe Crawford and Chestnut on the list. Mauer is amazing and deserves a huge contract, but it would be refreshing to see him stay a Twin for sure. If you hadn’t read, check out his SI story from 6/29 issue. Very good read.
Some additional epic Joe’s for your list:
Joey Tribiani
Curtis Joseph
mojo
Joe Camel
Joe Montana
Joe Jonas
Joe Biden
Joe Budden
Joe Six Pack
Joe Cool
Joe Dirt
Joe Flacco
G.I. Joe
Joe Gibbs
Additional Notes*
JOE- Acronym for Jerks Off Everyday
Joe Stewart JOE.
Check out the website link above for a good picture of Joe Mauer riding his tractor.
Love the Joe list Gard…Joe(y) Tribiani is probably in my top 10 but failed to make the top 5.
Appreciate the love James, and yes, 40ozsports has been killin it since 09.
Click my name for the website link
Who’s Joe Mauer? Why is he on a tractor? Hi theGard, great call on Joe Budden too, love him. What about ToothPick Joe?
great article keep it up
keep it up
smart good ideas
what about jersey joe walcott and miiions gi joes includes me good article keep it up
btw how do i upload a pic for my icon. thnx
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