yogi berra is in my hall of famer collection

i knew about yogi bear before i knew about yogi berra, but only one of them is in my hall of famer collection:

that's a 1998 donruss signatures significant signature card. it's numbered 1640/2000 on the back:

the back also features a latter day photo of yogi, which is the version of yogi that i am more familiar with.

by the time I began following baseball, yogi was a coach for the yankees and i quickly became more familiar with his quotes and unique phrasing than i did about his playing career.  that ignorance didn't last too long, as i learned about yogi the player in tandem with my research in to roy campanella's career.  they were the two premier catchers of the 1950's, with both winning 3 mvp's during that decade.  berra, of course, outpaced campanella in world series championships. he won 10 rings during his career as a player, and then 3 more as a coach (including twice against the dodgers).

as a result of his good fortune to be a part of the dominant yankee teams of the 1940's and 1950's, berra owns many world series records, including games played, plate appearances, and hits, and he ranks high on the leaderboard in many other categories. when berra retired, he had hit more home runs than any other catcher to have played the game, but it still took two tries for him to be voted in to the hall of fame. crazy.

despite his excellence as a player, the first card i ever owned of berra was a 1981 donruss card and so i identify with the elder version of one of baseball's greatest characters.

here's my hall of famer collection as its been documented so far:

babe ruth - 2003 topps tribute world series edition world series tribute relic 351/425

honus wagner - 2001 topps tribute relic

tris speaker - 2011 topps tribute dual relic green parallel 53/75

george sisler - 2004 topps tribute hall of fame tribute relic

dizzy dean - 2001 topps tribute relic

bob feller - 2001 topps archives

jackie robinson - 2004 topps clubhouse collection clubhouse relic

yogi berra - 1998 donruss signatures significant signatures 1640/2000

roberto clemente - 2005 donruss greats hall of fame souvenirs relic

warren spahn - 1999 upper deck century legends epic signatures

mickey mantle - 2000 upper deck legends legendary game jerseys relic

willie mays - 1997 topps willie mays reprints autograph

al kaline - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

duke snider - 2003 upper deck sp authentic chirography hall of famers 144/250

bob gibson - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

hank aaron - 2004 topps originals 1979 topps all-time record holders rbi 03/32

frank robinson - 1995 upper deck autographs

harmon killebrew - 2000 upper deck legends legendary signatures

pee wee reese - 2001 topps tribute relics

jim hunter - 1998 donruss signature series significant signatures 0736/2000

willie stargell - 2000 upper deck legends legendary signatures

gaylord perry - 2003 topps finest finest moments autographs

rollie fingers - 2018 topps archives signature series 1978 topps buyback 1/3

reggie jackson - 2018 topps tier one tier one talent autographs 19/60

steve carlton - 2018 topps five star career year autographs

mike schmidt - 2002 topps archives autoproof 1980 topps buyback 048/147

don sutton - 2001 fleer greats of the game

tony perez - 2004 fleer national pastime 2002 fleer greats authentic autograph buyback 30/59

dave winfield - 2003 upper deck sp authentic chirography hall of famers 121/350

gary carter - 1999 fleer sports illustrated greats of the game autograph collection

dennis eckersley - 2017 topps archives signature series 1984 topps buyback 47/99

paul molitor - 2016 topps museum collection archival autographs 021/125

bruce sutter - 2003 topps all-time fan favorites

jim rice - 2005 upper deck past time pennants past time signatures

andre dawson - 2000 fleer greats of the game autographs

alan trammell - 2001 fleer greats of the game autographs

roy halladay - 2017 topps archives signature series 2004 topps buyback 15/23

pete rose* - 2018 panini flawless legendary signatures 15/25

barry bonds* - 2001 bowman heritage autographs

you can find the full list of hall of famers (and some not - yet) that i aim to include in this collection at my want list site.

*not currently a member of the hall of fame