Why the New York Yankees Are the Greatest: Part Eight

If you walked down the street and asked 1,000 people to name a player in the baseball Hall of Fame who is named Lawrence Peter, almost nobody would know the answer.

If you walked down the street and asked the same 1000 people to name a player in the baseball Hall of Fame who is named Yogi, almost everybody would immediately know.

Lawrence Peter Berra grew up in the Hill section of St. Louis and was best friends with Joe Garagiola, who would become a big league catcher and more famously a broadcaster and tv personality.

Most people know Yogi because he has been seen on television so much in recent years at Yankee games, reminiscing about the old Yankee teams or sharing thoughts about the current Yankee players.

And of course many people know him for “Yogisms.”  To say the least, Yogi Berra has a way with words. 

Soon after he had made the big leagues he was given a dinner back in his hometown of St. Louis. He rose to speak and said, “I want to thank everyone for making this necessary.”

He was once asked if his wife had seen Dr. Zhivago. Yogi responded that he didn’t know she was sick.

At a pizza joint, he had ordered for himself and was asked if he wanted the pie cut in eight or 12 slices. “You better make it eight, I don’t think I can eat 12.”

Once when told by an opposing player that he was the ugliest man in baseball, Yogi wisely said, “I don’t hit with my face.”

“If you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

“Fifty percent of baseball is 90 percent mental.”

“I never said most of the things I said.”

“Half the lies they tell about me aren’t true.”

“He hits from both sides. He’s amphibious.”

“Congratulations. I knew the record would stand until it was broken.”

“Always go to other people’s funerals or they won’t come to yours.”

“Nobody goes there no more. It’s too crowded.”

“It gets late early out there.”

“It’s like deja-vu all over again.”

“In theory, there’s no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.”

“I ain’t in no slump. I just ain’t hittin’”

In the first inning of a game the first hitter smacked Whitey Ford’s first pitch down the right-field line for a double.  The second hitter drove the first pitch he saw right back through the mound for a single.  The third batsman hit the first Ford offering over the left field wall for a three run homer. 

Manager Casey Stengel slowly made his way to the mound and was met by Yogi.  Stengel turned to Berra and said, “What’s Whitey got?”  Yogi was honest, “How the hell do I know? I ain’t caught a pitch yet.”

But Yogi was much more than a funny man.

Until Johnny Bench, Yogi had hit more home runs than any other catcher in baseball history. Yogi and Bench were surpassed by Mike Piazza. But for a man who played his last game 43 years ago, he still is third on the all time list for home runs by catchers.

When Yogi joined the Yankees in 1946 they were already a great team. They had won 11 World Series at that point and were led by the great Joe McCarthy. They were a team that featured Joe DiMaggio.

But during Yogi’s 18 years as a player with the Yanks, they would surpass all previous glory. During the stretch from 1949-1953 they would win five World Series in a row, a feat never equaled in the history of this great game.

Yogi would go on to win more World Series rings than any other player ever has: 10.

From 1948 until 1962, Yogi was elected to every All-Star team. 

He was chosen American League Most Valuable Player three times, was runner-up twice, and finished third in this voting one time.

During a four-year stretch from 1953 to 1956, Yogi either won MVP or finished second in the voting every year.

Besides catching, Yogi also played outfield for the Yankees and even played one game at third and a couple of games at first. 

He looked like anything but a ballplayer. He was short and had arms that seemed much too long for his stubby body. But he was, in fact, very graceful, quick behind the plate, and had a very good arm.  And he was fleet afoot, a good base runner.

And he was extremely intelligent, a great baseball mind.  When Yogi was still playing and the Yankees were still going to the World Series every year, from 1960-1963, Yankee ownership planned for Yogi to be the manager.

Casey Stengel had been fired after the 1960 season, at age 70, after leading the Yankees to his 10th World Series in 12 years.

Stengel was replaced by Ralph Houk, another catcher, who had never risen to the stardom Yogi had achieved. But Houk was a good baseball mind and led New York to the World Series in each of his three seasons as manager, 1961, 1962 and 1963.

But Houk was moved to General Manager after the ’63 season and surprisingly Yogi was chosen as the manager. 

Yogi led the Yanks back to the Fall Classic in 1964 where they lost to the Cardinals. But Yogi had had a difficult year, managing players that he had played with and been friends with for many years, such as Whitey Ford, Elston Howard and Mickey Mantle.

Following the ’64 season a strange thing happened. Yogi was replaced by the man who had defeated him in the World Series, Johnny Keanne. 

Yogi left the Yankees in 1965 and went to join his old mentor, Casey Stengel who was the manager of the fledgling New York Mets. Yogi returned to play four games before quitting for good as a player.

In 1972, Yogi was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Yogi would coach for the Mets and eventually in 1972 became their manager.  He managed the Mets from 1972-1975.

He would return in 1984 to manage the Yankees under George Steinbrenner. He led the Yankees to a winning record and a third place finish in the American League East similar to their finish the year before under Billy Martin.

Yogi returned in 1985 to manage the Yanks but he was unceremoniously fired after only 16 games. Steinbrenner replaced him with Martin and Yogi was crushed by this.

For 14 years, Yogi Berra refused to return to Yankee Stadium and old fans were hurt by his refusal to come back to Old Timers games or to other ceremonies.

Finally in 1999, journalist Suzyn Waldman negotiated a meeting with Steinbrenner at the Yogi Berra museum in New Jersey. George apologized and Yogi accepted and Yogi has been a part of the Yankee family again ever since.

It goes without saying that baseball, and indeed our nation, has never seen another character like Yogi Berra.  Great player, great baseball mind.  Icon.  Yogi Berra is just one more reason the New York Yankees are the greatest team ever.