“Little League keeps the kids out of the house”
New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra (1925-2015) was asked by a radio announcer about Little League. “It’s a fine thing,” Berra was cited in 1963. “It keeps the kids outta the house.
Yogi’s quote became something different by at least 1984: “I like Little League baseball—it keeps a lot of parents off the street.”
“Little League baseball is a good thing because it keeps the parents off the street and the kids out of the house” was cited in Yogi Berra’s book, When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take It! (2001).
Wikipedia: Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter “Yogi” Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher, manager, and coach who played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–63, 1965), all but the last for the New York Yankees. An 18-time All-Star and 10-time World Series champion as a player, Berra had a career batting average of .285, while compiling 358 home runs and 1,430 runs batted in. He is one of only five players to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award three times. Widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
22 October 1963, The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, VA), “Sports of the Day” by Ed Brandt, pg. 20, col. 1:
He (Buck Henry, traveling secretary of the New York Yankees—ed.) also keeps up on the Yogi Berra stories, like the one when a radio announcer asked Yogi his opinion on Little League baseball.
“It’s a fine thing, Berra replied. “It keeps the kids outta the house.”
8 October 1964, Boston (MA) Traveler, “Yogiisms Will Live Forever” by Earl Wilson, pg. 29, col. 3:
In fact his old roommate, Tommy Heinrich, the Yankees’ great clutch hitter and fly-spearer of the ‘40s, nominated Yogi today for Bartlett’s Book of Quotations.
“Son of a buck, he’s brilliant, the things he says,” claimed Tommy.
“Like when asked what he thought of Little League baseball. Yogi say, Great. It keep the kids outa the house.’ Everything he says has got truth in it.”
31 December 1965, San Diego (CA) Union, Jack Murphy column, pg. B-5, col. 1:
Yogi Berra strongly endorsed Little League baseball. “I think Little League baseball is good,” he said. “It keeps the kids out of the house.”
Google Books
Laughs from the Dugout
By Milton J. Shapiro
New York, NY: Julian Messner
1966
Pg. 152:
Before he was fired by the Yankees, Yogi was asked what he thought about Little League baseball. “I think it’s good,” Yogi replied, “because it keeps the kids out of the house.”
26 July 1984, The Gazette (Indiana, PA), “Little League games keep ‘parents off the street’” by Dave Putnam, pg. 19, col. 1:
It was either Plato or Yogi Berra who once said “I like Little League baseball—it keeps a lot of parents off the street.”
28 June 1992, Altoona (PA) Mirror, “How to coach in Little League with style” by Larry Wallberg (Los Angeles Times), pg. E5, col. 3:
Yogi Berra once remarked, “Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.”
Google Books
When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take It!:
Inspiration and Wisdom from One of Baseball’s Greatest Heroes
By Yogi Berra with Dave Kaplan
New York, NY: Hyperion
2001
Pg. 77:
LITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL IS A GOOD THING BECAUSE IT KEEPS THE PARENTS OFF THE STREET AND THE KIDS OUT OF THE HOUSE
New York (NY) Post
35 of Yogi Berra’s most memorable quotes
By Post Staff Report
September 23, 2015 | 4:30am
Yogi Berra, considered one of the best catchers in major league history, died of natural causes at the age of 90 Tuesday. The Yankees legend and Hall of Famer may be better known for the way he creatively butchered the English language, with what became known as Yogi-isms.
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28. “I think Little League is wonderful. It keeps the kids out of the house.”