Dear Yogi Berra,

In a few days, catchers and pitchers, will report to spring training. As a baseball fan, I am excited for another season, but I wonder what scandals will erupt. Scandals, materialistic objects, and drug abuse seem to plague our players. Yet, there is hope, because history has to repeat itself; right? I hope, in this case, it does,
because legends like yourself hardly exist anymore.

There are a million stories about your legacy, and as fans we will hear them all, and at the end we will crave more of them, because when a legendary American such as yourself dies, there are simply not enough hours in the days to properly celebrate your life, a life of legacy.

You do not need to be a Yankee or baseball fan to realize the impact of Yogi Berra. People say that Ruth and Jeter built both Yankee stadiums, yet I think you had a part to play. Mr. Berra, you are one of the greatest Yankees to ever live. You will not only be remembered for your jokes but for your heart. A heart that made me see past all the negativity surrounding the Yankees. If it weren’t for that heart I wouldn't be who I am.

Yogi, I may not have known you personally but you played a huge role in my love of sports. When I was little in our basement, my parents set up a play area for me with an old TV. The TV was no bigger than 19 inches with a desk attached so I could watch cartoons, but most importantly, the Yankees. I would retreat to the basement with a notebook to watch the Yankees play.

I would write in those notebooks stories about the Yankees—stories that fueled my passion. Five years ago, when I got a flat-screen TV in my room, I would secretly stay up to watch the Yankees play. Today, I still love the New York Yankees, and one day aspire to represent some of their players in the agency field. None of this would have been possible without your kindness, loyalty, and humor.

Baseball defined you -- it was your life. Sixty-nine years to the day you first put on those pinstripes, you rocked the world with the news that at 90 years old, those pinstripes would never been seen on you again.

An 18-time all-star player, 10-time World Series champion, and one of only five people in history to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award, you are one of the most accomplished players in the game's history.

You are one of the most successful power hitters in the major leagues, playing alongside legends from the Golden Age of the Yankees like Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Roger Maris. Inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972, one of the most remarkable memories was when you played catcher for Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series.

After a sensational playing career, you went on to manage and coach the Yankees, Mets, and Astros before retiring from the game in 1989. With a career like yours, it is no wonder the legacy you leave behind.

While you will be remembered for the sensational career he had on the field, your pre-baseball life was just as impressive. A World War II Veteran and philanthropist, you fought in the D-Day invasions of the Normandy Beaches in 1945. Although initially signing a contract with the Yankees in 1943, your career was temporarily hindered because of the international warfare. This time in baseball is a stark contrast from today's culture in Major League Baseball where stars are earning around $1 million per game.

You amongst many other players took time away from a passion to fight for America, while receiving payment nowhere close to $1 million. After coming back from the War, you quickly proved to be the legend you were destined to become, along with other sensations, such as, Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, and Stan Musial, who put baseball on hold to fight in World War II.

Perhaps the thing that will live on most vividly about you are not your trophies, your World Series rings, or your dedication to and love of America, but your "Yogisms," the wacky quotes and pieces of advice that became the normal. My favorite being, “When you come to a fork in the road…take it.” You once even told CNN, “I really don't know why I say them, it just comes out.”

Yogi Berra, you are a man for the ages. You were one of the last of the truly sensational old-timers remaining from the Golden Age of the Yankees including Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Don Larsen and Whitey Ford; Old Timers' Day will never be the same. I may never have gotten to see you in person but that doesn’t mean your love will ever seize to exist.

Number eight will remain in its rightful place at Monument Park for the ages, where all can remember the place that Yogi built. You left behind a legacy and a humor, a fighting spirit so deep and so expansive that everyone was your friend; a life that President Obama felt deserved being awarded a Medal of Freedom. You truly encompassed a life worth living.

May you rest in peace knowing the millions of lives touched by you. As Derek Jeter eloquently wrote:

“To those who didn’t know Yogi personally, he was one of the greatest baseball players and Yankees of all time. To those lucky ones who did, he was an even better person. To me he was a dear friend and mentor. He will always be remembered for his success on the field, but I believe his finest quality was how he treated everyone with sincerity and kindness” (The Players Tribune).

Rest easy, my friend, in the glory of all your accomplishments.