It's indeed over
Yogi ends long feud with Stenbrenner
Posted: Wednesday January 06, 1999 01:03 PM
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Berra: "Fourteen years, I'd say, is long enough" AP |
NEW YORK (AP) -- Welcome back, Yogi.
With two simple words -- "it's over" -- and a handshake Tuesday, Yogi
Berra ended his 14-year feud with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.
And when Yogi says it's over, it's over.
The whole thing started when the Boss fired Berra as New York's manager
only 16 games into the 1985 season. Ever since, the man who popularized the
phrase "it ain't over 'til it's over" has stayed away from Yankee Stadium.
"Fourteen years, I'd say, is long enough," the 73-year-old Berra said.
"He apologized again."
Steinbrenner flew in from Florida earlier in the day and apologized for
the way in which he dismissed Berra -- sending a club executive to deliver
the word rather than doing so in person.
The reconciliation, arranged by radio station WFAN, came at an
appropriate setting -- the Yogi Berra Museum on the campus of the Hall of
Famer catcher's adopted alma mater, Montclair (N.J.) State University.
"I didn't realize how much I'd screwed up. It was a major screw-up. It
was a stupid thing on my part," Steinbrenner said. "It was a monumental
mistake on my part. Sometimes, it takes a long time to get things right.
Yogi is a highly principled man. I messed up."
"I'm just happy he feels it's time to put this behind us," he said,
standing next to Berra during a WFAN interview. "I'm glad he's said,
'George, I forgive you.'"
Berra has not been at Yankee Stadium for an official function since he
was replaced by Billy Martin with a 6-10 record in 1985, though he has
occasionally showed up to visit friends.
Berra, who managed the Yankees to the World Series in 1964, had returned
for the 1984 season and went 87-75.
There's no word yet, but look for Berra to be back at the ballpark this
year, throwing out a first ball and appearing at Old-Timers Day.
"I told him how much I wanted him to come back to Yankee Stadium again,
where he belongs," Steinbrenner said. "I didn't feel right winning the
World Series last year and not having Yogi there."
"I'd like to have him sitting with me sometimes, just to talk about
what's going on," he said. "He is a treasure."
And Berra wanted to make this clear: He never stopped rooting for his old
team, for which he won three AL MVP awards.
"I pulled for them," he said.
Last summer, before a Yankees-Mets interleague game at Shea Stadium,
Berra seemed to indicate a possible thaw in his Steinbrenner freeze. The
official end came Tuesday when Steinbrenner met for 15 minutes with Berra
and his wife, Carmen, at the museum.
After that, Berra gave Steinbrenner a 45-minute tour of the building. The
owner said he was impressed with the items on display, including uniforms,
bats and the mitt he used to catch Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956
World Series.
"I could spend a whole day here," Steinbrenner said. "I'm going to start
sending him some stuff."
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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