Via David Waldstein: The Yankees will honor the late Nelson Mandela by placing a plaque in Monument Park, which will be unveiled on Jackie Robinson Day next season (April 15th). Mandela famously visited New York and Yankee Stadium after being released from prison in 1990, and during that trip he put on a team cap and jacket and said “You know who I am. I am a Yankee.”
The Yankees already have several plaques in Monument Park for non-Yankees and non-players. The aforementioned Robinson has a plaque, as do the three popes who visited Yankee Stadium (Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI) and the victims of the Sept. 11th attacks. The decision to add a plaque for Mandela, who passed away last week, trickled down from ownership. Pretty neat. (Comments off because politics!)