On Wednesday, Sept. 23, New Yorkers awoke to very somber news. One of the great Yankee legends, Yogi Berra, had passed away the evening prior...69 years to the day after his Major League Baseball Debut. Growing up on Staten Island, being a die hard Yankees fan was second nature to me. Although I am only 19, I know more of Yogi Berra than just his reputation. I've had the pleasure of seeing him at numerous Old Timer's Day games. For anyone who doesn't know...Old Timer's Day is quite possibly the greatest sporting event of the year...even better than the Super Bowl. All of the Yankee greats come together to play a few innings of baseball. No other team in sports history can have a reunion of these sorts.Traditionally, he was the last player introduced. This year, a member of the Yankee family will be missing from the festivities and will be honored by a moment of silence and thousands of fans proudly wearing his number: 8.
Berra had an impressive 19-season-long career as a player in the MLB. He played all but his last season as a catcher for the New York Yankees and spent his last year with the Mets. He was also an 18-time All-Star and 10-time World Series champion with a career batting average of .285, 358 home runs, and 1,430 runs batted in. Being one of only five players in Major League history to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award, Berra is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in history. He also caught Don Larson's perfect game in the 1956 World Series, the only perfect game in postseason history. In 1972, Berra was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Yankees retired his number, 8. They honored him with a plaque in Monument Park in 1988.
In 1998, Yogi Berra established the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center and the Yogi Berra Stadium on the Campus of Montclair State University. He wanted children to learn the importance of sportsmanship and dedication. The Museum is filled with memorabilia items of sorts. Berra was also a longtime supporter of the National Italian American Foundation.
Even if you are not a big baseball fan, you have definitely heard one of Yogi Berra's famous "Yogi-isms". Berra dropped out of school after the eighth grade and would often make statements with paradoxical meanings, but they were always witty and often contained a powerful message. At the very least, they put a smile on your face.
Famous Yogi-isms:
"Baseball is 90% mental, and the other half is physical"
"If you come to a fork in the road, take it"
"It ain't over 'til its over"
"It's deja vu all over again"
"Nobody goes there anymore, its too crowded"
Rest In Peace Yogi Berra.
