Yogi Berra, baseball great, died two weeks ago Tuesday.
He managed the NL All-Stars in 1974, being the manager of the senior circuit's reigning champs, the New York Mets. He got to be in the same dugout as Johnny Bench, a man with whom he's associated because there might be some debate over which one was the best catcher of all time. Also in that dugout was Hank Aaron, whose Braves were the Mets' opponents in Berra's final game as a player and the Yankees' opponents in two World Series. Another one of his former opponents calling him skipper for the day was Pete Rose, not far away from the action when Yogi pinch-hit against the Reds in '65. Aaron and Rose were the first position players on the NL side to be subbed.
Berra's five pitchers in that game were new to being All-Stars. In fact, seven of the eight pitchers were first-timers. The one who wasn't, Steve Carlton, didn't even take the mound that night. Berra gave the Pirates' Ken Brett his only Midsummer Classic moment in the sun in the fourth inning, and even though Brett didn't strike anyone out, he was good in those two frames, allowing just one hit. Brett ended up being the winning pitcher as he and four others held Reggie Jackson hitless and kept Bert Campaneris and Brooks Robinson from getting on base. Reportedly, Berra said of the 7-2 win, "We had the better team."
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