Berra was born in St. Louis, in an Italian community, and signed with the Yankees in 1943 before serving in the United States Navy as a gunner's mate in the Normandy landings during World War II.

For the remainder of his life, he was closely involved with the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, which he opened on the campus of Montclair State University in 1998.

"[9] Berra's parents originally gave him the nickname "Lawdie", which was derived from his mother's difficulty pronouncing "Lawrence" or "Larry" correctly.

That block was also home to Jack Buck early in his Cardinals broadcasting career, and it was later renamed "Hall of Fame Place".

On the surface, the Cardinals seemed to think that Garagiola was the superior prospect, but team president Branch Rickey actually had an ulterior motive.

[16][17] Berra joined the United States Navy in 1943, and served as a gunner's mate on the attack transport USS Bayfield during the Normandy landings.

Following Operation Dragoon, he was sent to Tunisia before returning to the United States in January 1945 and being stationed at Naval Submarine Base New London.

He also bribed guards to allow him to sneak off base and play for the Cranston, Rhode Island, Chiefs for $50 a game under an assumed name, as he was already signed with the Yankees.

[24] Following his military service, Berra played minor-league baseball with the Newark Bears, surprising the team's manager with his talent despite his short stature.

[32] From 1949 to 1955, on a team filled with stars such as Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio, it was Berra who led the Yankees in RBI for seven consecutive seasons.

[35][36] The picture of Berra leaping into Larsen's arms following Dale Mitchell's called third strike to end the game is one of the sport's most memorable images.

The combination of bat control and plate coverage made Berra a feared "clutch hitter", proclaimed by rival manager Paul Richards "the toughest man in the league in the last three innings".

"[40] At age 37 in June 1962, Berra showed his superb physical endurance by catching an entire 22-inning, seven-hour game against the Detroit Tigers.

[43] All was apparently forgotten when the Yankees rode a September surge to return to the World Series, but the team lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games, after which Berra was fired.

Houk, who was general manager at the time, later said the decision to fire Berra was made in late August and that the incident with Linz had nothing to do with it.

[48][49] When the Mets faced the 99-win Cincinnati Reds in the 1973 National League Championship Series, a memorable fight erupted between Bud Harrelson and Pete Rose in the top of the fifth inning of game three.

After the incident and the ensuing bench-clearing brawl had subsided, fans began throwing objects at Rose when he returned to his position in left field in the bottom half of the inning.

When National League president Chub Feeney threatened the Mets with a forfeit, Berra walked out to left field with Willie Mays, Tom Seaver, Rusty Staub, and Cleon Jones in order to plead with the fans to desist.

[50] Yogi's Mets went on to defeat the highly favored "Big Red Machine" in five games to capture the NL pennant.

[59] During World War II, Berra served in the Navy as machine gunner participating in the D-Day invasion and earned a Distinguished Unit Citation, two battle stars and a European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal.

The feud had started in 1985 when Steinbrenner, having promised Berra the job of Yankees' manager for the entire season, fired him after just 16 games.

On that day, Yankees pitcher David Cone threw a perfect game against the Montreal Expos,[69] only the 16th time it had ever been done in Major League history.

[79] Berra and former teammate Phil Rizzuto were partners in a bowling alley venture in Clifton, New Jersey, originally called Rizzuto-Berra Lanes.

[85] Based on his style of speaking, Yogi was named "Wisest Fool of the Past 50 Years" by The Economist magazine in January 2005.

In 2009, Berra appeared in the documentary film A Time for Champions, recounting his childhood memories of soccer in his native St.

They had three sons and were longtime residents of Montclair, New Jersey, until Carmen's declining health caused them to move into a nearby assisted living facility in West Caldwell.

[97] A moment of silence was held before the September 23 games of the Yankees, Dodgers, Astros, Mets, Nationals, Tigers, Pirates, and his hometown St. Louis Cardinals, as well as the ALPB's Long Island Ducks.

Allen Barra has described them as "distilled bits of wisdom which, like good country songs and old John Wayne movies, get to the truth in a hurry.

"[99] Berra is often incorrectly credited with the saying "It ain't over till the fat lady sings," which was first attributed to Texas Tech University sports information director Ralph Carpenter in 1976.

[107] Berra appeared in advertisements for products and companies including Yoo-Hoo, Visa, Pringles, Stove Top stuffing, Aflac, Camel cigarettes, Ballantine Beer, Kraft Italian salad dressing, Prest-O-Lite batteries, Wheaties, Shelby bicycles, Diamond Chemicals, Spencer Chemicals, AMF Bowling, Miller Lite, Kinney Shoes, Pepsi, Jockey underwear, wristwatches, orange juice, foot spray, and cat food.