Yogi Berra Got Called Up to the Majors Yesterday.

[Muzzy]

Yesterday, 69 years to the day when he made his MLB debut, Yogi Berra passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 90.

If you've ever said "It's deja vu all over again", or "it ain't over until it's over" or (my personal favorite) "There's some people, if they don't know, you can't tell them.", then you owe a literary debt to this man.

You would be hard pressed to find a more quotable individual than Yogi Berra. He was a US Navy D-Day Veteran who dabbled in acting and had a cartoon character named after him.

Also, the greatest Catcher in the history of baseball.

Catchers make average pitchers look good, good pitchers look great, and great pitchers look like David Price. Yogi won 10 World Series championships. Of the 11 No-Hitter's in Yankee's team history, Yogi caught 3 of them, including the only perfect game in World Series history.

For me though, his greatest accomplishment came through is unique gift with the English Language....a talent for tautology and paradoxical contradiction that remains unrivaled in the modern age. It's no exaggeration that this guy could match William Shakespeare in terms of witticisms. (I'm pretty sure Shakespeare got on base more often though.)

Berra's funeral will be attended by everyone, because "You should always go to other peoples' funerals. Otherwise they won't go to yours."

Rest In Peace.

[rpm]

"it ain't over until it's over"

It's over. RIP Yogi

[Frodo]

 


http://www.stltoday.com/sports/baseball/professional/birdland/one-that-got-away-when-yogi-tried-out-for-the/article_724f6b34-5a68-514d-9e02-9c5967ffeb43.html

[hgtonyvi]

RIP yogi.....

[Hajo]

Gentlemen, it is truly unfortunate that most remember Yogi and his Yogiisms.  He was far, far more then that.

He served  on D-Day on a Gunboat supporting the invasion as a member of the US Navy.  He was always very humble.

Being a Cleveland Indians fan and a big baseball fan since the 50s, few remember to win the AL you had to go through
Cleveland or New York.  The rivalry they had at that time was intense.  There was no love lost between the two.

He is considered the 5th greatest Yankee of all time.  High praise and fast company considering who the 5 were.

Records I can remember that Yogi set.  Played more games in the world series then anyone else.  He had 71 hits in 72 games
including 12 home runs.  He almost never struck out!  Look at his stats to bear this out.  He hit more lifetime home runs then he had strikeouts!

He was MVP three times!  In the top 5 of voting for MVP many many times.  He was an All-Star 18 times in his 19 year career!
He caught (and called) three no hitters and the only perfect game in world series history in 1956.

Humble....as an example of this I remember seeing an interview when Yogi, Garagiola, and Euker were interviewed and the three were asked
who they thought was the best catcher they ever saw.  True to being the ever humble Yogi he answered Jimmy Hegan, great catcher of the Indians.

He was the best "bad ball" hitter I ever saw.  He tagged stuff that was high outside about cap level and put it over the wall leaving myself saying
"how the hell does he do that?"  This frustrated this Cleveland Indian Fan all the while he played.  19 seasons by the way.

So, with much respect and sorrow this Indian and baseball fan for life says......Thanks Yogi, you made baseball fun for me as well as frustrating.  Ya done good.

In some circles he is considered the greatest catcher of all time.  My answer to younger folks is this.  You had to be there.  Not being arrogant at all.
He was just that good.  A great humble man.  (Hajo says begrudgingly with much respect.)

Sorry if I repeated facts in Muzzys' post........just typing personal thoughts at the time off the top of my head, what I could remember.

[Muzzy]

One of my friends actually had the pleasure of meeting him on several occasions and his sentiments echoes what you have said. Yogi was a remarkable man. I will say, though, that I think his aphorisms are just as worthy of celebration. In this day and age we undervalue genuine wit, wisdom and eloquence, and Yogi was a master of all three. True, his incredible baseball accomplishments may be overshadowed by his statements, but I think it's amazing that so many of his words have come to be repeated and remembered by so many people, most of whom might not ever know that they were quoting him. What better legacy than to have the words you say repeated by generations?

Then again, by his own admission, he never said most of the things he said.

[Nypsy]

R.I.P. Yogi

[DmonSlyr]

Such a shame to see such a great man and ball player pass on. He was a true legend

 

[Saxman]

My mom got to meet him when he was doing one of his book signings here in St. Louis. My mom and her family grew up in or around The Hill, and hearing that if it weren't for the line behind her they'd have probably talked all afternoon about it. In fact it wasn't Berra himself who stopped the conversation, but the guys managing the event!

Berra and Musial are the two players I most regret never getting to meet or see play (mom met Musial, too. When she was a kid her class was supposed to sing at his restaurant downtown for a holiday gig, but it was too crowded and they had to cancel. He PERSONALLY came out to apologize for the mix-up and sign autographs).