The meaning behind the MLB bobblehead on Dwight's desk in 'The Office'

Jordan Heck

The meaning behind the MLB bobblehead on Dwight's desk in 'The Office' image

If you are an avid viewer of "The Office," you might have noticed a bobblehead of a Phillies player on Dwight Shrute's desk.

dwight-schrute-desk-bobblehead-FTR

That player is Mike Lieberthal. He is a two-time All-Star, a Gold Glove winner and a member of the Phillies' Wall of Fame.

You might not have thought much of this bobblehead considering it represents a Phillies player and the fictional Dunder Mifflin paper company is based in Pennsylvania. Maybe Dwight just likes the Phillies.

Also, if you know about Lieberthal's minor league baseball career, you know he played for the Triple-A baseball team in Scranton, where the show is based. It is a fun piece of trivia, but there's actually another layer behind this bobblehead.

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Let's check out Lieberthal's profile on ever-trusty Wikipedia.

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That's right — his full name is Michael Scott Lieberthal. (Credit to Reddit user m_rose95 for discovering this.)

Dwight spends much of the series trying to gain Michael Scott's affection. Michael even calls Dwight a "kiss ass" at one point. So it's hilarious that even a seemingly innocent bobblehead of a baseball player on Dwight's desk plays into this theme throughout the series.

MORE: Ranking the top 20 sports moments of 'The Office'

And if you don't buy into that, then recall this quote from Dwight: "People underestimate the power of nostalgia. If baseball can use it to get people to care about that worthless sport, then I can use it to get my siblings to care about the farm."

So Dwight clearly isn't a baseball fan. But he loves Michael so much, he has baseball memorabilia on his desk.

Jordan Heck

Jordan Heck Photo

Jordan Heck is a Social Media Producer at Sporting News. Before working here, he was a Digital Content Producer at The Indianapolis Star. He graduated with a degree from Indiana University.