A Forbes contributor wrote the other day about the various tax cases that have quoted Yogi Berra, who died this week. One of the cases he cites is Frank Ruano and John Scannell v State of Washington, King County, and Ralph Munro. In that case, in 1996, the Washington Supreme Court dismissed challenges to legislation providing “a means of financing the construction of a publicly owned major league baseball stadium in King County.” Footnote 12 reads:

Apparently the alleged motivation behind the Stadium Act is the belief by some that the Mariners baseball team will leave Seattle unless it is furnished a new stadium, because, it is asserted, that more fans would attend the new facility than the existing Kingdome facility. However, as Yogi Berra said, “If people don’t want to come out to the ballpark, nobody’s going to stop them.”

Also this week, Seattle Met published a good story about the Mariners’ 1995 season, including a lot about how the legislation to fund the future Safeco Field got passed. Recommended.