I was never a fan of the Dodgers. The men on the field were always changing. They weren't in the lineup due to injuries or slumps. The makeup of the team has changed.
One thing was always unchanging. There was a man who was a Dodgers fan. There is a man who is a Dodgers baseball player.
Greetings to all of you and a very pleasant evening to you.
The 14 words were the beginning of the broadcast. Dodger fans were reassured by those words. The next three hours were all about nothing. The only thing you had to do was listen. Vin will lead you on a journey.
Vin was special because of many things. His voice, his knowledge, his stories are all contained in his voice. He told a story in a way that was easy to understand. He knew when to speak and when to not speak at all.
When he was 22, Scully started broadcasting.
As a young Dodger fan, one thing that stood out to me was how important it was for fans to listen to the radio. If you went to a Dodgers game at any point in his career, you could hear the voice of the man. Hundreds, even thousands of fans brought transistor radios to the game to listen to Vin call a game
I didn't know until I was older that he called Dodgers games alone for a long time. I thought that was the norm. I realized that didn't happen anywhere else when I became older.
Hockey, hockey, hockey. Two people are always present. Occasionally three. Don't just one person talking for a long period of time. Vin was the only person who could do it.
I don't think I'm old enough to say goodbye to a man like Vin Scully. For the first 16 years of my life, I could hear his voice in my living room, but I never met him. I didn't hear some of his most famous calls when I was a fan of the Dodgers.
I didn't get to hear him say "In a year that has been so unbelievable, the impossible has happened" Sandy Koufax had a perfect game in 1965, but I didn't hear it called. Vin told fans to throw their sombreros in the sky.
I didn't hear the call when Hank passed Babe Ruth on the all-time home run list. The 49ers dynasty began when Joe Montana hit Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone.
Some of the biggest moments in sports history came close to being heard by Vin Scully.
I was not familiar with him that way. He was the youngest person to call a World Series. The person who was calling the games.
Vin Scully was a Dodgers fan.
I knew it was time for Vin to come on. He began every broadcast with, "It's time for Dodger baseball."
The Dodgers played in the same stadium where he passed. He told the fans that he would give them a rainbow, a smile, a promise, and a blessing in each trial. Every problem life seems to have, a faithful friend to share, a sweet song, and an answer for each prayer.
We have been friends for a long time, but I know I need you more than you need me, and I will miss our time together. There will be a new day, a new year, and when the upcoming winter gives way to spring, it will be time for Dodgers baseball. Vin Scully wishes you a pleasant day wherever you are.
Rest in peace to the greatest person in the history of broadcasting.
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