Jon Deeble is the little-known Australian baseball legend who just won a sixth World Series championship ring with LA Dodgers

Jon Deeble is not a name spoken about when discussing Australian sporting legends. But the Melbourne-born baseball scout should be, given his World Series success. He speaks to JON ANDERSON.

Lost in the euphoria of last month’s 4-1 World Series win by the LA Dodgers was a remarkable sixth championship ring for Melbourne-born baseball legend Jon Deeble.

Born into a western suburbs baseball family 62 years ago, Deeble is the Pacific Rim scouting boss for the LA Dodgers, a job that requires half of his year spent in the US or Asia.

JA: Who have you won World Series rings with?

JD: Florida Marlins in 1997, Boston Red Sox in 2004, 2007 and 2013, and LA Dodgers in 2020 and 2024.

Jon Deeble won his sixth ring just last month with the LA Dodgers. Picture: David Crosling

JA: Sorry to cut to the chase, but what are those rings worth?

JD: The 2004 Boston one could be worth around $200,000 given it was their first in 84 years. If you have a World Series ring in Boston, you don’t pay for anything. In terms of fanaticism, think Collingwood multiplied by 100.

JA: I grew up hearing Babe Ruth was the greatest all-round baseballer in history.

JD: Not any more. The comparison with Shohei Ohtani isn’t even close. I first scouted Ohtani when he was 16 at Hanamaki Higashi High School in Iwate Prefecture. On a wet, cold day he pitched at 101/mph and hit a ball over the centre field. He was this huge kid who moved like a gazelle.

Deeble scouted the now global superstar Shohei Ohtani when he was a teenager. Picture: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

JA: Next year he will pitch again after injury. What is he better at?

JD: I would have originally thought he was a better pitcher but 54 home runs this year! I can’t imagine there will ever be another Ohtani. He is very, very focused on his baseball and very private.

JA: John McEnroe was once asked what was the best sport in the world? He answered, baseball.

JD: I understand that because it includes so many different athletic components. And what I do know is baseballers have speed and power. Most top sportsmen in the world have that, some one or the other, whereas superstars like Patrick Dangerfield or Bo Jackson have both.

JA: Can the AFL improve its scouting/recruiting?

Deeble’s latest ring for the collection. Picture: David Crosling

Deeble’s whole collection of World Series championship rings. Picture: David Crosling

JD: Absolutely. What the AFL hasn’t got the gist of is “buying wins”. When Patrick Dangerfield was at his top, he was worth 2.1 wins a years based on data. If you get 10 of him, then you get 21 wins. The system is called WAR, Wins Above Replacements. The team that puts scouting at the top will win.

JA: Insecurity exists in the AFL system, with people very protective of their areas.

JD: Hey, I don’t want their job but it’s world’s best practice. The problem with the AFL is they don’t understand “holding the chip”. The chip is the player and you should always get huge reward for a top player. In the US good teams will give up top young prospects for a star. The Brisbane Lions actually do it and understand the system.

JA: What does baseball do better than AFL in terms of players?

JD: Identifying the specific needs of each person after a physical examination that runs so deep. And then working incredibly hard on those needs.

JA: How did a Waverley Reds player get to the Major Leagues in the US?

JD: Back in the early 1990s, when we once got 20,000 to a game, I got asked to join the Florida Marlins as hitting coach for their rookie ball team and that led to scouting, where I have identified players such as Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima.