The Yankees have been blessed with a string of excellent catchers, from Bill Dickey in the 1930's through Thurman Munson in the 1970's, but no catcher was as beloved nor as talented as Yogi Berra. From 1946 through 1963 Yogi Berra was the glue that held the Yankee dynasty together, winning an unthinkable 10 World Championships. Three times Berra was voted the American League's MVP and after he retired, he refused to take off the pinstripes, remaining with the Yankees as a coach and then manager.

     Throughout his career Berra played on several teams that are mentioned as being among the best of all-time, but perhaps none were as powerful as the 1961 Yankees. That was the season that saw Mantle and Maris battling to break Ruth's single-season home run title and Whitey Ford going a surreal 25-4 on the mound. It was also the season that saw the 35 year-old Berra slugging his way to his last great season, hitting .271 with 22 homers. Berra put the finishing touches on his last full season with a final World Series home run in the Yankees sweep of the Reds. After the World Series victory, Berra gifted his well-worn mitt to the Yankees team plane's pilot Randy Nicklas. By reviewing Spalding catalogs from 1959 to1961, the mitt is a 1457 Yogi Berra model, most likely manufactured and distributed in 1960.

     The mitt shows great game use with all the scuffing and turf marks expected from a Hall of Famer of Berra's caliber. The leather remains fairly supple and soft to the touch. The webbing and laces are intact and have come loose in a few areas around the thumb webbing. The heel of the mitt's pocket carries the stamped "Larry Yogi Berra" endorsement and the model number and "Personal Model" stamping are visible. The mitt bears no personal markings by Berra which may be because the Yankees other two catchers, Elston Howard and John Blanchard, used Rawlings mitts so there was no reason for Berra to differentiate his mitt from his teammate's. To make this already historic glove even more desirable, the Yankees' most beloved backstop has signed the upper inside fingers area in dark blue marker. A great artifact from one of the greatest Yankees of all-time that dates to one of the most memorable teams in the history of the game. This glove comes with Letter of Authenticity from PSA/DNA (AA07004) and the Editor of "The Glove Collector, Joe Phillips.

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