Meet a Prospect: Vin Scully

The New York Yankees asked Vin Scully, the Los Angeles Dodgers legendary announcer, if he would make the trip to New York this season to call the three-game series between the two clubs and to be honored by the organization. Scully declined, and who wouldn’t have thought that Mr. Humble would decline, so the game goes on as planned this afternoon but not before we honor Mr. Scully for his life’s work and achievements the only way really that we know how. This is Meet a Prospect: The Vin Scully Edition. Put respect on his name.

Vincent Edward Scully was born on November 29, 1927 and has been the Dodgers sportcaster and play-by-play announcer since the team was still in Brooklyn. Scully has been with the team 67 seasons now including the 2016 season, his final season, which is by far the longest tenure with one organization in all of sports history. “It’s time for Dodger baseball! Hi, everybody, and a very pleasant good morning to you, wherever you may be.”

Scully was born in the Bronx and grew up in Washington Heights, Manhattan where he made ends meet by delivering beer and mail, cleaning silver in the baseball of the Pennsylvania Hotel and any other odds and end jobs he could find. Scully grew up in a hard situation like many did in that area during that time. His biological father died when he was just four-years old and he grew to love his stepfather, Allan Reeve, like his own father. Scully attended Fordham Preparatory School for High School before attending Fordham University, the same school as our very own Michael Kay, with a short United States Navy stint thrown in between for good measure. While at Fordham Scully helped found the school’s FM radio station WFUV while also working as an assistant sports editor for the “Fordham Ram.” Scully somehow also found time to since in a barbershop quartet and play centerfield for the Fordham Rams baseball team while also doing announcing the for the baseball, football and basketball teams from the school. Did this guy ever sleep?

Scully caught his big break while announcing a University of Maryland vs. Boston University college football game at Fenway Park in 1949 and it led to him beginning his tenure with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1950. Scully worked with Red barber and Connie Desmond while with the Dodgers until a salary dispute for Barber led to Scully taking the reins for the 1953 World Series at the age of just 25. Scully remained with the Brooklyn Dodgers until they moved to Los Angeles before the 1958 season and Scully followed his team to the West Coast where he can still be found today. Scully had offers to go elsewhere, the New York Yankees offered him a job to succeed Mel Allen in 1964 for example, but Scully remained loyal to the Dodgers and the Dodgers fans remained loyal to him. In 1976 the Dodgers fans voted him the “most memorable personality” in the history of the franchise. What an accomplishment.

It wasn’t always smiles and cheers for Scully though. During the 1993 season Don Drysdale, former Hall-of-Fame pitcher for the Dodgers and at the time the color commentator for the Dodgers alongside Scully, suffered a heart attack and passed away before a game and Scully was told not to mention the death on air until the family could be notified and an official death announcement was made. When Scully was finally able to speak on the matter he did so with class, as always, and with another memorable quote. “Never have I been asked to make an announcement that hurts me as much as this one. And I say it to you as best I can with a broken heart.”

Scully is best known for his baseball announcing but he also held media credentials in football from 1975 to 1982 for CBS Sports. Scully also covered CBS Sports tennis coverage as well in the late 19780’s and early 1980’s including covering the Masters from 1975 to 1982. Scully left CBS for NBC in 1983 after Scully was, for lack of a better word, pushed out of the NFL limelight by John Madden. Scully worked as NBC’s baseball broadcaster from 1983 to 1989 while also calling the 1984, 1986 and 1988 World Series as well as the NLCS on four occasions and the All Star Game four times as well. Scully stayed with NBC until 1990 when his contract ran out and he decided to fully focus on his job with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Vin Scully’s final game inside Dodger Stadium after his 67 season career will come on September 25, 2016 when the Los Angeles Dodgers play host to the San Francisco Giants. The final regular season game for Vin is expected to be at San Francisco’s AT&T Park on October 2, 2016. When will his final game be seeing as the Dodgers seem ready to head to the postseason? Only the man good enough to have created Mr. Scully knows that. Congratulations on such an awesome career and thank you for all you’ve done for Major League Baseball.