Dale Anthony Berra (born December 13, 1956) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

player who primarily played as an

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

from to . He is the son of

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

catcher

Yogi Berra Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (born Lorenzo Pietro Berra; May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of Manager (baseball), manager and Coach (baseball), coach. He played 19 seas ...

and brother of former

Baltimore Colts The Baltimore Colts were a professional American football team that played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983, when owner Robert Irsay moved the franchise to Indianapolis. The team was named for Baltimore's history of horse breeding and racing. It w ...

return specialist A return specialist or kick returner is a player on the special teams unit of a gridiron football team who specializes in returning punts and kickoffs. There are few players who are exclusively return specialists; most also play another positio ...

Tim Berra.

Early years

Dale was named after Dale Mitchell, who had made the final out in

Don Larsen Don James Larsen (August 7, 1929 – January 1, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher. During a 15-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, he pitched from 1953 to 1967 for seven different teams: the St. Louis Browns / Baltimore ...

's perfect game two months earlier, when he took a called third strike that was caught by Yogi. Berra was a highly sought prospect upon his graduation from Montclair High School in

Montclair, New Jersey Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...

. He was drafted by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central ...

with the twentieth overall pick in the

1975 Major League Baseball draft The 1975 Major League Baseball draft took place prior to the 1975 MLB season. The draft saw the California Angels select Danny Goodwin first overall. First round selections The following are the first round picks in the 1975 Major League Base ...

, and made his major-league debut on August 22, 1977, at the age of twenty.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Berra was a member of the

1979 World Series The 1979 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1979 season. The 76th edition of the World Series was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Pittsburgh Pirates (98–64) and the Am ...

champion Pirates, though he did not play in the postseason. A

third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...

in the minor leagues, Berra earned playing time at third,

second The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...

and

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

his first five seasons in the majors before being handed the starting shortstop job in . That season, he enjoyed career highs in

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

(.263),

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

(139),

runs scored In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted bal ...

(64) and

runs batted in A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...

(61). In 1983, he set the record for reaching base on catcher's interference with seven.

New York Yankees

Yogi Berra was named manager of the Yankees prior to the start of the season. Following the season, the Yankees acquired the younger Berra, along with

Jay Buhner Jay Campbell Buhner (born August 13, 1964), nicknamed "Bone", is an American former professional baseball right fielder. He played for the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball from 1987 to 2001. Noted for his shaved head ...

and Alfonso Pulido for

Steve Kemp Steven F. Kemp (born August 7, 1954) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Texas Rangers. Professio ...

and

Tim Foli Timothy John Foli (born December 6, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player, coach and minor league manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop for the New York Mets, Montreal Expos, San Francisco Giants, ...

, whom Berra had replaced as the Pirates starting shortstop. Dale became the first son to play for his father in the major leagues since

Earle Mack Earle Thaddeus McGillicuddy (February 1, 1890 – February 4, 1967), known as Earle Mack, was an American player and coach in Major League Baseball, and, during parts of two seasons, manager of the Philadelphia Athletics when his father, Co ...

who appeared in a total of 5 games for the

Philadelphia Athletics The Philadelphia Athletics were a Major League Baseball team that played in Philadelphia from 1901 to 1954, when they moved to Kansas City, Missouri, and became the Kansas City Athletics. Following another move in 1967, they became the Oakland ...

from 1910 through 1914 under

Connie Mack Cornelius McGillicuddy (December 22, 1862 – February 8, 1956), better known as Connie Mack, was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and team owner. Mack holds records for the most wins (3,731), losses (3,948), ties (76), and ga ...

. Dale was batting .343 until his father was fired sixteen games into the season and replaced by

Billy Martin Alfred Manuel "Billy" Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989) was an American Major League Baseball second baseman and manager who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of the New York Yankees. First known ...

. Under Martin, Dale was returned to a back-up infielder role, and his batting average fell to .229 for the season. The most notable play of Berra's career was a bizarre baserunning gaffe which also involved

Bobby Meacham Robert Andrew Meacham (born August 25, 1960) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, who spent his entire six-year big league playing career with the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball (MLB). Since retiring from active play ...

in an 11-inning 6–5 loss to the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...

on August 2, 1985. With Meacham and Berra the runners at second and first base respectively in the seventh inning of a game tied at three,

Rickey Henderson Rickey Nelson Henley Henderson (December 25, 1958 – December 20, 2024), nicknamed "Man of Steal", was an American professional baseball left fielder who played 25 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for nine teams from 1979 to 2003, inc ...

hit a ball that rolled to the farthest reaches of left-center field. When Meacham slipped between second and third base, both runners ended up approaching home plate in synchronized fashion, one on the heels of the other. After catching the relay throw from shortstop

Ozzie Guillén Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios (; born January 20, 1964) is a Venezuelan-American former professional baseball player who is the current manager (baseball), manager of Tiburones de La Guaira of the Venezuelan League. He played in Major League B ...

catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...

Carlton Fisk Carlton Ernest Fisk (born December 26, 1947), nicknamed "Pudge" and "the Commander", is an American former professional baseball catcher who played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox. In 197 ...

tagged out Meacham to his right, then turned to his left just a split second later to do the same to Berra to complete the

double play In baseball and softball, a double play (denoted as DP in baseball statistics) is the act of making two outs during the same continuous play. Double plays can occur any time there is at least one baserunner and fewer than two outs. In Major Le ...

. Martin commented, "I've never seen that in grammar school, much less a major-league game."

Pittsburgh drug trials

On September 9, 1985, Berra testified during the

cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...

distribution trial of Curtis Strong that he shared cocaine with other members of the Pirates. On February 28, , Baseball Commissioner

Peter Ueberroth Peter Victor Ueberroth (; born September 2, 1937) is an American sports and business executive known for his involvement in the Olympics and in Major League Baseball. A Los Angeles–based businessman, he was the chairman of the Los Angeles Ol ...

suspended several players including Berra. The suspensions were waived with a commitment for community service and donations of 10% of their salaries for one year.

Houston Astros

Lou Piniella Louis Victor Piniella ( usually ; born August 28, 1943) is a former professional baseball player and manager. An outfielder, he played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Indians, Kansas City Royals a ...

was named the Yankees' manager in and Berra was released on July 27. Shortly afterwards, he was signed by the

Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...

where Yogi Berra was a coach. Dale spent the rest of the 1986 season with Houston's triple-A affiliate. After spending most of with triple-A

Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

, Berra debuted with the Astros on August 15. He batted .178 in 19 games for the Astros, and was released at the end of the season. He spent the season in the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles (also known as the O's) are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. As one of the America ...

' system before retiring.

Personal life

A resident of

Glen Ridge, New Jersey Glen Ridge is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,802, an increase of 275 (+3.7%) from the 2010 United St ...

, Berra was charged in April 1989 with cocaine possession as part of an investigation into a drug ring that was distributing as much as $20,000 in cocaine weekly in northern New Jersey. After three years in the

Pretrial Intervention Program The Pretrial Intervention Program (PTI) is a program targeted at providing first-time offenders charged with non-violent crimes with an opportunity to avoid the crippling consequences often associated with a felony criminal conviction, and attempts ...

, the charges were dismissed. In 1990, Berra was running a construction company in

Cranford, New Jersey Cranford is a Township (New Jersey), township in Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,847, an increas ...

. He is one of the principals of LTD Enterprises, which controls the brand image of his father. At the time of his retirement, Berra had played more games than any son of a Hall-of-Famer, topping

Dick Sisler Richard Alan Sisler (November 2, 1920 – November 20, 1998) was an American player, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball. The son of Hall of Fame first baseman and two-time .400 hitter George Sisler, Dick Sisler's younger brother Dave wa ...

(853 to 799). This record was later broken by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. His older brother, Larry, played briefly in the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...

organization, and his older brother, Tim, played with the

in 1974.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berra, Dale 1956 births Living people American people of Italian descent Charleston Patriots players Children of baseball players Columbus Clippers players Houston Astros players Major League Baseball shortstops Major League Baseball third basemen Montclair High School (New Jersey) alumni New York Yankees players Niagara Falls Pirates players Portland Beavers players Sportspeople from Glen Ridge, New Jersey Sportspeople from Montclair, New Jersey Baseball players from Essex County, New Jersey Sportspeople from Ridgewood, New Jersey Baseball players from Bergen County, New Jersey Pittsburgh Pirates players Rochester Red Wings players Tucson Toros players 20th-century American sportsmen