Baseball legend Yogi Berra passed away last night at the age of 90 on the same day he played his first Major League Baseball game 69 years ago. He was a child of Italian immigrants in St. Louis before becoming an icon in New York -- then a national treasure.
Although Berra is most known for ‘Yogiisms,’ his accomplishments as a ball player put him in the elite echelon of the all-time greatest players. During his 18-year career as the Yankee catcher, the team won 10 World Series. He was an All-Star 18 times and won the American League MVP 3 times. From 1949 to 1955, on a team with hall of famers like Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio, it was Berra who had the most RBI’s. He played a supporting role in one of the most of the most memorable moments in baseball history when he caught Don Larson’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series. The image of him leaping into Larson’s arms is an iconic sports photo. Berra was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
In 1957 Yogi Berra was the highest paid player in baseball making a salary of $65,000. In 2015 the highest paid players are pitcher’s Clayton Kershew and Jon Lester who will be bringing in a staggering $30 million each in annual salary.
Here are 20 of Berra’s most memorable quotes:
1. It ain't over till it's over.
2. You can observe a lot by just watching.
3. When you come to a fork in the road, take it.
4. Always go to other people's funerals, otherwise they won't come to yours.
5. No one goes to that restaurant anymore. It's too crowded.
6. Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.
7. A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore.
8. It's like déjà vu all over again.
9. It gets late early out here.
10. Congratulations. I knew the record would stand until it was broken.
12. You wouldn't have won if we'd beaten you.
13. I usually take a two-hour nap from one to four.
15. Slump? I ain't in no slump… I just ain't hitting.
16. It was impossible to get a conversation going, everybody was talking too much.
17. The future ain't what it used to be.
19. We made too many wrong mistakes.
20. A lot of guys go, 'Hey, Yog, say a Yogi-ism.' I tell 'em, 'I don't know any.' They want me to make one up. I don't make 'em up. I don't even know when I say it. They're the truth. And it is the truth. I don't know.