The legendary announcer Vin Scully, who was the voice of the Los Angeles Dodgers for more than 60 years, died on Tuesday at the age of 94, the team said.
Stan Kasten, the President and CEO of the Dodgers, said in a statement, “We have lost an icon.”
“Vin Scully was one of the best voices in sports. He was the voice of the Dodgers. He was a giant of a man, both as a broadcaster and as a person who helped others “Kasten said.
“He cared for people. He enjoyed living. He was a big fan of baseball and the Dodgers. He also cared about his family. We will all always remember his voice and be able to hear it.”
The team says that the beloved radio and TV host, who was born Vincent Edward Scully on November 29, 1927, in New York, died at his home in Hidden Hills, Los Angeles County. His five children, 21 grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren will carry on after him.
Scully was given the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Ford C. Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
On September 14, 2011, during the seventh inning of a game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers, Vin Scully sings “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.”
Red Barber, a Hall of Fame broadcaster, asked Scully to join the Dodgers in their first home in Brooklyn, New York, as the third member of the broadcast crew. Scully had just graduated from Fordham University. In 1953, when he was 25, he was the youngest person to ever call a World Series game. Two years later, when Barber left the Dodgers to join the New York Yankees, Scully took over as the team’s voice.
As the young announcer told the Baseball Hall of Fame, Barber was an early influence on him: “Red was my teacher and my dad at the same time. I don’t know, maybe I was the son he never had. He didn’t really teach me how to broadcast. It was a way of being. Get there early to the park. Do your homework. Have a plan. Be accurate.”
From his spot in the broadcast booth, Scully told the story of some of baseball’s best teams. He was there when the “Boys of Summer” won their first World Series in 1955. In the 1956 World Series, he called the last innings of Don Larsen’s perfect game. The team said that it was one of Scully’s more than 20 no-hitters during his career.
When the team suddenly moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958, Scully also left his hometown to spend the rest of his 67-year career with the Dodgers. According to the team, this is the longest time any broadcaster has spent with a single team.
In addition to covering the Dodgers, he was also an announcer for golf and football games that were shown on national TV. His most famous calls were when Hank Aaron hit his 715th home run in Atlanta, passing Babe Ruth, and when Kirk Gibson, who was hurt, hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to win Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.
There will never be another Vin Scully. You will be forever missed. ๐๐ pic.twitter.com/WyTmXsati5
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 3, 2022
Friends And Fans Say Goodbye
The Dodgers beat the Giants in San Francisco on Tuesday night. After the game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that the broadcaster made him want to be better.
“There is no one better at telling stories. I think everyone thinks of him as a family member. So many generations of our families watched him on TV. Fans of the Dodgers think of him as one of them. He had a great life that will be remembered for all time.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson, another famous athlete from Southern California, said that “Dodger Nation” had lost a legend. “I’ll never forget how smooth he was on the air. He had a voice and a way of telling stories that made you feel like he was talking to you alone.”
LeBron James, who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers, said of Scully, “Another great guy who made sports so damn special.” Billy Jean King, a famous tennis player, said that Scully would be missed: “He really knew how to tell a good sports story,” she said on Twitter.
Eric Garcetti, the mayor of Los Angeles, said that his death marked the end of a part of the city’s history. “He brought us together, gave us hope, and taught us what it means to serve. Tomorrow, Vin, our dear friend and the Voice of LA, our City Hall will be lit up for you. Thank you from a city that is grateful and kind.
On September 25, 2016, Scully called his last home game for the Dodgers. In an interview with CNN in 2020, Scully talked about how it felt: “When I left Dodger Stadium on my last day there, I hung a big sign out the door of the booth window that said, “I’ll miss you.” I felt that way about the fans.”
