Greatest 21 Days Baseball Profiles

Denny Berni never made the majors as a player. He saw three seasons. One of his students at the business he established afterward, Pro Teach Baseball, however, went on to be a major league star: Joey Votto. "When I first saw him he was a big strong kid," Berni told The Toronto Sun in 2014 upon Votto's induction into his hometown hall of fame. "He was cordial, a nice guy. No one knew he was going to be this great." Berni's own career lasted those three seasons . He topped out at high-A. Berni's career began in 1990, signed by the Red Sox as an undrafted free agent. He is a native of Toronto . Berni played summer collegiate ball the previous summer in Lima, Ohio. His manager there, Darren Mazeroski, praised Berni's catching work along with a teammate in July 1989 to The Lima News . "Both have done an outstanding job of blocking balls and handling pitchers," Mazeroski told The News . "Both have made a noticeable improvement." Ber...