Baseball legend Yogi Berra dies

Baseball legend Lawrence “Yogi” Berra died of natural causes Tuesday at his home in New Jersey. He was 90 years old.

Berra had great success as a New York Yankee. He achieved all-star status 15 times, helped the Yankees win 10 World Series, and holds many Series records.

Contrary to popular opinion, Berra’s nickname, “Yogi,” has no connection to the Hanna-Barbera cartoon character. Berra had no appreciation for the character and even accused Hanna-Barbera of stealing his name. Bobby Hoffman, a friend of Berra’s, gave Yogi the moniker because of his habit of sitting with his legs crossed, similar to a Hindu “yogi” or yoga practitioner.

Berra served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and participated in the D-Day landings in Normandy, France, as a crewman aboard a rocket boat. Berra and his crewmates provided covering fire throughout the invasion. Part of his assignment was to deliberately draw fire from enemy positions so Allied air strikes could hit them. His boat took fire, but Berra and his crewmates were not injured.

Berra’s wife of 65 years, Carmen Berra, died in 2014. He also leaves behind three sons, two of whom also played professional sports.