However, he has made significant contribution in another, totally unrelated field – Yogiisms. Berra has a tendency of exploiting and breaking the English language in highly provocative albeit interesting ways. This made his comments sharp, succinct and humorous at the same time. Simultaneously denying and confirming his reputation, Berra once stated, “I never said half the things I really said.” for example, Dining at an italian restaurant, a waitress asked Berra how many slices she should cut his pizza, he replied, “You better make it 4, I don’t think I could eat 8.” In another incident, When told by the New York mayor’s wife that he looked cool in his new summer suit, Yogi said, “You don’t look so hot yourself.”

Check out these example of Yogiisms:

“80 percent of the balls that don’t reach the hole, don’t go in.” – on golf

“The wind always seems to blow against catchers when they are running.”

“If you can’t imitate him, don’t copy him.”

“Baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical.”

“You can observe a lot by watching.”

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

“Why buy good luggage? You only use it when you travel.”

“Think! How the hell are you gonna think and hit at the same time?”

“Bill Dickey is learning me his experience.”

“You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going because you might not get there.”

“If you don’t know where you are going, you will wind up somewhere else.”

“Nobody goes there anymore because it’s too crowded.”

“It gets late early out there.”

“He hits from both sides of the plate. He’s amphibious.”

“I don’t know. They had bags over their heads.” – when asked if the fans that ran naked on the field were men or women

“I want to thank you for making this day necessary.” – on Yogi Berra Appreciation Day in St. Louis in 1947

“The other teams could make trouble for us if they win.” – on the American League situation

On the aquisition of fleet Ricky Henderson: “He can run anytime he wants. I’m giving him the red light.”

“So I’m ugly. So what? I never saw anyone hit with his face.”

“You give 100 percent in the first half of the game, and if that isn’t enough in the second half you give what’s left.”

“The game isn’t over until it’s over.”

“You should always go to other people’s funerals, otherwise, they won’t come to yours.”

“It ain’t the heat, it’s the humility.”

“I always thought that record would stand until it was broken.”

“We made too many wrong mistakes.”

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Yogi Berra received the loudest cheers as was expected. He played almost his entire career for the New York Yankees and was elected to the baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. Arguably the most beloved baseball player since Babe Ruth, Berra was one of only four players to be named the Most Valuable Player of the American League three times, and one of only six managers to lead both American and National League teams to the World Series.

The other significant ones who received cheers included Willie Mays, Hank Aaron and Cal Ripken Jr., Whitey Ford, Reggie Jackson, Goose Gossage, Ozzie Smith, Gary Carter et al. There were some boos too.

Yankees principal owner George Steinbrenner came at the end of the ceremony and was driven on a golf cart – so unlikely of him. Apparently he has been sick  but no outsider knows the details of his illness.

His outspokenness and role in driving up player salaries have made him one of the sport’s most controversial figures, though his willingness to spend to build the club (and its post-season success since 1976) have earned him grudging respect from some baseball executives, while at the same time earning him contempt from some fans. He is known as a hands-on executive, earning the nickname “The Boss”. His tendency to hire and fire (and occasionally re-hire) managers led then-Yankees skipper Dallas Green to give him the derisive nickname “Manager George”.

During Steinbrenner’s ownership since 1973, the longest in club history, the Yankees have earned 10 pennants and six World Series titles.

The Boss has had his share of controversies also. He famous for both his pursuit of high-priced free agents and, in some cases, infamous for feuding with them. In his first 23 seasons, he changed managers 20 times (including dismissing Billy Martin on five separate occasions), and general managers 11 times in 30 years. In July 1978, Martin said of Steinbrenner and his $3 million outfielder Reggie Jackson, “The two were meant for each other. One’s a born liar, and the other’s convicted.” The comment resulted in Martin’s first departure, though technically Martin resigned (tearfully), before Yankees President Al Rosen followed through on Steinbrenner’s dictum to release the manager.

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