Irony...
Yogi Berra was born Lorenzo Pietro Berra in a primarily Italian neighborhood of St. Louis called "The Hill" to Italian immigrants Pietro and Paolina (née Longoni) Berra. Pietro was originally from Malvaglio near Milan in northern Italy; he arrived at Ellis Island on October 18, 1909 at the age of 23.[5][6] In a 2005 interview for the Baseball Hall of Fame, Berra said, "My father came over first. He came from the old country. And he didn't know what baseball was. He was ready to go to work. And then I had three other brothers and a sister. My brother and my mother came over later on. My two oldest brothers, they were born there—Mike and Tony. John and I and my sister Josie were born in St. Louis."[7]
Berra's parents originally gave him the nickname "Lawdie", which was derived from his mother's difficulty pronouncing "Lawrence" or "Larry" correctly. He grew up on Elizabeth Avenue, across the street from boyhood friend and later competitor Joe Garagiola. That block was also home to Jack Buck early in his Cardinals broadcasting career, and it was later renamed "Hall of Fame Place".[8] Berra was a Roman Catholic,[9] and he attended South Side Catholic, now called St. Mary's High School, in south St. Louis with Garagiola. Berra has been inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame.[10]
He began playing baseball in local American Legion leagues where he learned the basics of catching while playing outfield and infield positions, as well. He also played for a Cranston, Rhode Island team under an assumed name.[11] While playing in American Legion baseball, he received his famous nickname from his friend Jack Maguire, who, after seeing a newsreel about India,[12] said that he resembled a Hindu yogi whenever he sat around with arms and legs crossed waiting to bat or while looking sad after a losing game.[13]
