Mitch Lewis
Sports Editor
On Sept. 22, 1946, a 21-year-old, left-handed hitting catcher, who stood a measly five feet seven inches, made his major league debut for the powerhouse New York Yankees. On the very same day, 69 years later, Yogi Berra bid farewell at the grand age of 90. Berra was known as one of the best catchers of his era and even of all time. He was a 13-time World Series champion, 10 times as a player, a record, and three more as a coach.
“You can observe a lot by watching,” Berra said. He appeared in 21 World Series games, the most by any one player or coach ever. He is also one of only five players in the history of the game to win the American League MVP three times in his career and is one of only four catchers to not make a single error in a season. Yogi hit 358 home runs over his career and is the all time leader in RBIs for a catcher. He also made 18 all star games, starting 11 of them at the catcher position.
Yogi was known for his elite knowledge of the game as well as for his “yogi-isms,” terms and phrases that he coined that he has come to be praised for, including, “It ain’t over till it’s over,” “Baseball is 90 percent mental and the other half is physical,” and “So I’m ugly, so what? I never saw anyone hit with his face.”
Yogi possessed a reputation as a very loyal husband to his wife Carmen who he had been married to for 65 years until she passed away in 2014. Yogi had three sons, two of which played professional sports. His son Dale played shortstop for the Pirates, Yankees (Which Yogi was the manager of) and the Astros. His other son Tim played in the NFL for the Colts in 1974.
Yogi left behind a legacy as an honorable and humble manager, coach, husband, father, friend and player. These traits even carried over into his phrases, such as, “Always go to other people's funerals; otherwise they won't go to yours." In response to the popularity of his quotes, he coined the phrase, "I really didn't say everything I said."
RIP Yogi
