April 21, 1992 —



What the hell kind of name is Joc?

It might seem like a very appropriate name. After all, Joc is a jock. He's a professional baseball player working his way through the Dodgers organization. But if Joc was named Joc because he is a jock, well, that seems awfully prescient on the part of his parents. Not to mention that "jock" is also the name for an important athletic accessory used to protect the male genitalia. So probably not what was intended.

Perhaps Joc's parents are French, or French-Canadian (and really bad spellers?). But no, the Pedersons have a California pedigree, so that can't be it.

Some might argue that "Joc" is really meant to be "Joke", since, y'know, Jewish baseball player and all. These people would be sadly mistaken as Joc is currently putting up (as of this writing) a .327/.452/.582 line in AAA Albuquerque. He might be the Dodgers second best outfielder right now and he isn't even with the club yet.

So the origins of Joc's ummmmm Joc will have to remain a mystery. At least for now. Meanwhile, the always unimpeachable Wikipedia notes that Joc has brothers named Champ and Tyger. It doesn't really explain the name, but at least it gives us some context for the choice, hm?