“When you think about him, you just naturally smile.” That was Cal Ripken Jr. on Yogi Berra who died at the age of 90. Berra left behind a remarkable career in baseball (a sport he described as “ninety percent mental and the other half is physical”) and a collection of quotes that could be even more remarkable. SI’s Alex Belth on the death of an American original.

+ Roger Angell in The New Yorker: “For decades, any mention of his name made you smile.”

+ FiveThiryEight: “More than the obvious accolades — the three Most Valuable Player awards, the 10 World Series wins — Berra was exceptional by virtue of his improbability.”