The son of Italian immigrants, Lawrence Peter Berra grew up in the historic Italian district of St. Louis known as "The Hill," where he was given the nickname of "Yogi" by a friend, noting his resemblance to a snake charmer seen in a movie of the era. Berra spent countless hours of his youth playing baseball in the sandlots of St. Louis, enjoying the company of neighbors such as Joe Garagiola, who himself earned a World Series ring as a St. Louis Cardinal in 1946.

Berra went on to establish himself as a celebrated player after entering the New York Yankees farm system in 1942, but his career was initially delayed when he entered the U.S. Navy in World War II and went on to participate in the famed D-Day landings.