Former New York Yankees legendary catcher Lawrence Peter “Yogi” Berra has died at the age of 90. Yogi Berra played from 1946-1963 for the New York Yankees. He played for the New York Mets in 1965. His first stint as Yankees manager came in 1964 and he then returned to managed the Mets from 1972-1975. Yogi received his nickname from a childhood friend who thought he looked like a Hindu Yogi who was in a movie they had just seen. He managed the Yankees for a 2nd time from 1984-1985. In 1946 Yogi made his MLB debut today, so he died 69 years after his MLB debut. Dave Kaplan, the director of the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, announced the news of the former Navy veteran’s death.
As a member of the Yankees he won 13 World Series titles between 1947 and 1978. He was named to 18 all star teams including every all star game from 1948-1962. He is a 3 time AL MVP, getting those MVPs in 1951,1954 and 1955. In the minors Yogi once had 23 RBIs in a doubleheader. He finished his career with a .285 average, 704 walks, 1,430 RBIs, and 358 homeruns. In the playoffs he had a .274 average, with 12 homers and 39 RBIs. His number 8 is retired by the New York Yankees. In 1999 on Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium, prior to the game Don Larsen threw out the first pitch to Yogi and on that same day in the game, David Cone threw a perfect game.
He is a member of the MLB All Century team. He is also a member of the VAVEL USA All Time Baseball Team as the starting catcher. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY in 1972, his 2nd year on the ballot. He was the catcher in one of the most famous moments in baseball history when Don Larsen threw a perfect game in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. After the final strike he bounded to Don Larsen where he jumped in Larsen’s arms.
He was involved in one of the most famous plays at home plate in baseball history between him and Jackie Robinson. In Game 1 of the 1955 World Series Jackie Robinson tried to score and was called safe but Yogi has since insisted he was out.
When he was 18 in 1943 he joined the United States Navy and put his baseball career on pause to spend 3 years in the Navy serving in World War II. He went up on Omaha Beach in the famous D-Day.
Off the field Yogi has many accomplishments, the cartoon character Yogi Bear is named after Berra. He was a key character in the TV miniseries about the Yankees and New York City as a whole in the 70’s called The Bronx is Burning. In that show he was portrayed by Joe Girafasi. Yogi’s “Yogism’s” will always be remembered and has become part of American vocabulary even if you don’t like sports. Some of the best Yogism’s are
It ain’t over until it’s over”, “Why buy good luggage, you only use it when you travel.” “I didn’t really say everything I said”; when talking about a restaurant he said, “Nobody goes there anymore it’s too crowded.” Yogi also said, “Always go to other people’s funerals or they won’t go to yours.”
According to ESPN.com Yogi talked about Yogism’s by saying, “ When I'm sittin' down to dinner with the family, stuff just pops out. And they'll say, 'Dad, you just said another one. And I don't even know what the heck I said.”
The Berra family released a statement through the museum, "While we mourn the loss of our father, grandfather and great-grandfather, we know he is at peace with Mom. We celebrate his remarkable life, and are thankful he meant so much to so many. He will truly be missed." Yogi’s wife Carmen died on March 14th, 2014 a few months after celebrating their 65th wedding anniversary.
The New York Yankees changed their twitter avatar to the pinstriped number 8 denoting his retired number. They also tweeted, “We are deeply saddened by the loss of a Yankee legend and American hero, Yogi Berra.” They included a picture of Yogi in the tweet.
Update: The New York Yankees announced that they would wear a number 8 on the sleeves of their jerseys tonight in memory of Yogi.
