With a nickname like “Joltin’ Joe”, I thought for sure Joe DiMaggio must have an impressive number of stolen bases (SB). According to Joe’s stats, Joe had 30 SBs in 13 years. In contrast, Baltimore Oriole Al Bumbry had 252 SBs in the same number of years! The only variable here is the respective lengths of baseball seasons that (as I understand it) changed from one era to the next. So…why was Joe DiMaggio called “Joltin’ Joe”?
Joltin’ refers to hitting, not stealing bases.
This. He was also known as the Yankee Clipper, as per Wikipedia:
Note that even that nickname apparently wasn’t in reference to baserunning or base stealing.
Another variable is style of play over the years. The stolen base was popular up until about 1917, then began to decline. It was at a low ebb during DiMaggio’s career from 1936-1951. It rose again during Bumbry’s career from 1972-1985.
I don’t know why you would think “Joltin’” had anything to do with stolen bases.
Excellent point, though the numbers in that table can be a little misleading once you get to the Expansion Era (1961 and on); the table shows stolen bases for the entire AL and NL, but more teams were added to each league over time.
That said, stolen bases definitely were more common in the 1970s and 1980s then they were during DiMaggio’s era, as well as being more common than they are today.
Given the Yankees love for power hitters that started with Babe Ruth, base stealing was not considered a particularly valuable skill. In 1936, DiMaggio’s first year, the entire team had only 76 stolen bases, less than 1/2 per game. In DiMaggio’s final season, 1951, the total was 69. In 1947 the Yankees were world champions with a total of 27 stolen bases for the entire season.
Phil Rizzuto led the Yankees in stolen bases most years, but his total was only 149 over 13 seasons.
Joe DiMaggio set the major league record for hitting safely in 56 consecutive games. Just as impressive, after going hitless in game #57, he hit safely in an additional 18 consecutive games. That’s a streak of 74 games out of 75 with at least one base hit. Sounds pretty joltin’ to me.
I’m with Jinx. It’s a clear reference to speedster Usain Jolt.
No, it refers to the vast amounts of coffee and cigarettes that DiMaggio consumed.*
*he was a heavy smoker.
This ^
Nothing more needs to be written or read.
And now he’s left and gone away, hey.
No, it’s about his consumption of Jolt Cola. 
I thought it was from his side business as a residential electrician.
Man had to pay the rent somehow.
Nah, man. He was just a particularly poor Uber driver in the off season.
72 of 73.
Most amazing stat:in those 73 game, only six strikeouts.
Probably why he was picked to be the spokesman for Mr. Coffee.
You’re right. I mis-remembered the games after the first 56 as 18 rather than 16.
Wasn’t “Joltin’ Joe” Marilyn Monroe’s nickname for him? 
I’ve always hated the redundancy of that line.
Interesting side note:
DiMaggio, playing in the Pacific Coast League as a 19 year old, hit in 61 straight games. So, not a one hit wonder.