Yogi Berra

Knight said:
Berra, a Hall of Famer, was a 10-time world champion with the Yankees, an 18-time AL All-Star and a three-time league MVP. His 1950 season is one of the greatest of all time, as in 656 plate appearances, he struck out just 12 times, while hitting .322 with 28 homers and 124 RBIs.
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Loved Yogi, Mick my hero. Met Ellie Howard at LGA once. Whitey, Clete,Kubek, Richardson, Lopez, Blanchard! More 1960s than 50s. I was too young to remember pre 1957
 
The notion he was a bad ball hitter was perhaps true, but as Knight said he rarely struck out. DiMaggio until his final season had more career home runs than strikeouts. Berra I believe hit 358 home runs and struck out about 450 times, an incredible ratio for a power hitter.

Berra also figured in the top 25 of mvp votes every season he played as a full time player, exhibiting remarkable consistency.

Behind the plate he was initially shaky but the Yankees brought Bill Dickey to spring training to work with him and Berra work so hard he became a great defensive catcher, especially adept at pouncing on bunts to throw out runners.

In his 80's he could still recall pitch counts and sequences against batters in important games or moments. Incredible recall for someone portrayed as not very bright. In that regard, Berra once remarked, "I did say most of the things I said."

One blight against his judgment was that for years he was adamant that he had tagged out Jackie Robinson in his world series steal of home. More recently computer enhanced imagery of the video proved that Berra was correct.

A beloved Italian American icon, not unlike our own Looie.
 
MainMan said:
The Yogi Berra Museum on the campus of Montclair State U in Berra's hometown is worth a visit for Yankee and Mets lore especially if there's a minor league game being played at Yogi Berra Stadium next door.

Home - Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center

yogiberramuseum.org yogiberramuseum.org
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My brother gave me this t shirt as a gift a few years back. Wrinkled but a sign of times when star athletes weren't worth mega millions.20230511_135443(0).jpg
 
He would drive batters crazy in the batters box with his non stop chatter, distracting them from the task at hand. In the world series vs. The Braves he was non stop telling Henry Aaron he would break his bat because he was holding the bat in a position that would hit the ball on the label which was thought to be the weak spot on the bat. Yogi went on and on, telling Aaron to point the label at his face. Aaron finally growled at Berra, "i ain't up to to read, I'm here to hit"
 

While there are many, here our Top 20 Yogisms:​

  1. "When you come to a fork in the road.... take it."
  2. "You can observe a lot by just watching."
  3. "It ain't over till it's over."
  4. "We made too many wrong mistakes."
  5. "No one goes there nowadays, it’s too crowded."
  6. "I always thought the record would stand until it was broken."
  7. "Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too."
  8. "In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is."
  9. "Pair up in threes."
  10. "You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you are going, because you might not get there."
  11. "The future ain’t what it used to be."
  12. "I usually take a two-hour nap from 1 to 4."
  13. "If the world was perfect, it wouldn't be."
  14. "You don’t have to swing hard to hit a home run. If you got the timing, it’ll go."
  15. "Ninety percent of the game is half mental."
  16. "Never answer an anonymous letter."
  17. "Why buy good luggage? You only use it when you travel."
  18. "Take it with a grin of salt."
  19. "It gets late early out here."
  20. "I never said most of the things I said."
 
Beasts of the East said:
The notion he was a bad ball hitter was perhaps true, but as Knight said he rarely struck out. DiMaggio until his final season had more career home runs than strikeouts. Berra I believe hit 358 home runs and struck out about 450 times, an incredible ratio for a power hitter.

Berra also figured in the top 25 of mvp votes every season he played as a full time player, exhibiting remarkable consistency.

Behind the plate he was initially shaky but the Yankees brought Bill Dickey to spring training to work with him and Berra work so hard he became a great defensive catcher, especially adept at pouncing on bunts to throw out runners.

In his 80's he could still recall pitch counts and sequences against batters in important games or moments. Incredible recall for someone portrayed as not very bright. In that regard, Berra once remarked, "I did say most of the things I said."

One blight against his judgment was that for years he was adamant that he had tagged out Jackie Robinson in his world series steal of home. More recently computer enhanced imagery of the video proved that Berra was correct.

A beloved Italian American icon, not unlike our own Looie.
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Re: the steal of home….’computer enhanced imagery’ notwithstanding, there’s not enough evidence to overturn the call on the field, as they say. Jackie was, and will eternally be——-safe!
 
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