Joe Boley

Who was Joe Boley?

John Peter "Joe" Boley was a shortstop who played six seasons in Major League Baseball from 1927 to 1932. He played for the Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians. Boley is best known as the starting shortstop of the dominant, World Series winning Athletics teams of the late 1920s and early 1930s.

Boley started his professional career with the Baltimore Orioles where he played on seven championship teams. Boley, along with teammates Lefty Grove and Jack Ogden were held back by manager Jack Dunn for financial and performance reasons, which held back his Major League career. He was signed by Connie Mack for an estimated $60,000 in 1927, but his career was on the decline. Despite his short MLB career, Boley was considered to be one of the top shortstops in baseball.