Vin Scully
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Vincent Edward Scully (November 29, 1927 – August 2, 2022) was an American sportscaster, best known for his broadcast work in
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
. Scully was the play-by-play announcer for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers for sixty-seven years, beginning in
1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...
and ending in
2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
. He is considered by many to be the greatest sports broadcaster of all time. Born in the Bronx, New York City, Scully attended
Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...
where he played baseball before becoming a student broadcaster and journalist. After being mentored by Dodgers broadcaster
Red Barber Walter Lanier "Red" Barber (February 17, 1908 – October 22, 1992) was an American sports announcer and author. Nicknamed "The Ol' Redhead", he was primarily identified with broadcasts of Major League Baseball, calling play-by-play across four ...
early in his career, Scully was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1950, and moved with them to
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
in 1958. He became known for his distinctive tenor voice and lyrically descriptive style. Scully's tenure with the Dodgers was the longest of any broadcaster with a single team in professional sports history. He retired at age 88 after the 2016 season. In addition to Dodgers baseball, Scully called various nationally televised football and golf contests for
CBS Sports CBS Sports is the American sports programming division of Paramount Global that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried by its broadcast network CBS and streaming service Paramount+, as well as the operator of its cable channel CBS Sports N ...
from 1975 to 1982, and was the lead baseball play-by-play announcer for
NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division for NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, that is responsible for sports broadcasts on their broadcast network NBC, the Cable television, cable channels NBC owns, and on Peacock (streaming service) ...
from 1983 to 1989. He also called the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
for CBS Radio from 1979 to 1982 and again from 1990 to 1997. For his long and distinguished career, Scully was honored with a star of the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
and was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame and NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame. For his services to baseball, he was honored with the Ford C. Frick Award by the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. Prior to his final season, the Dodgers honored Scully by renaming the street leading towards
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
to "Vin Scully Avenue". That same year, he was awarded the
Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by decision of the president of the United States to "any person recommended to the President ...
by President
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
. After a long illness, Scully died on August 2, 2022, at his home in Hidden Hills, California.


Early life

Born in
the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...
, Scully grew up in the Washington Heights section of
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. His father, Vincent Aloysius Scully, was a silk salesman; his mother, Bridget (née Freehill), was a homemaker. He was of Irish descent. His biological father died of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
when Scully was four, and his mother later married an English merchant sailor named Allan Reeve, whom Scully considered "my dad". He had one sibling, a younger sister who died of brain cancer in 2002, aged 67. Scully attended Fordham Preparatory School in the Bronx. He worked delivering beer and mail, pushing garment racks and cleaning silver in the basement of the Pennsylvania Hotel in New York City. Scully discovered his love of baseball at age eight when he saw the results of the second game of the 1936 World Series at a laundromat and felt a pang of sympathy for the badly defeated
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
, who had lost the game 18–4 to the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
. Since he lived near the
Polo Grounds The Polo Grounds was the name of three stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used mainly for professional baseball and American football from 1880 to 1963. The original Polo Grounds, opened in 1876 and demolished in 1889, was built for the ...
and because he was a member of the NYC Police Athletic League and Catholic Youth Organization, he was able to attend games for free and became a "very big Giants fan".


Broadcasting career


Fordham and CBS Radio

After serving in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
for two years, Scully began his career as a student broadcaster and journalist at
Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...
, where he majored in English. While at Fordham, he helped found its FM radio station WFUV (which now presents a Vin Scully Lifetime Achievement Award each year), was assistant sports editor for Volume 28 of '' The Fordham Ram'' his senior year, sang in a barbershop quartet, played center field for the Fordham Rams baseball team, called radio broadcasts for Rams baseball,
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
, and
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, earned a degree, and sent about 150 letters to stations along the Eastern seaboard. He received only one response, from CBS Radio affiliate WTOP in Washington, D.C., which hired him as a fill-in.
Red Barber Walter Lanier "Red" Barber (February 17, 1908 – October 22, 1992) was an American sports announcer and author. Nicknamed "The Ol' Redhead", he was primarily identified with broadcasts of Major League Baseball, calling play-by-play across four ...
, the sports director of the CBS Radio Network, recruited Scully for its
college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
coverage. Scully impressed his boss with his coverage of a November 1949
University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...
versus
Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...
football game from frigid
Fenway Park Fenway Park is a ballpark located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home field of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantia ...
in Boston, despite having to do so from the stadium roof. Expecting an enclosed press box, Scully had left his coat and gloves at his hotel, but never mentioned his discomfort on the air; the game proved an exciting affair that attracted Barber to ask him for further assignments. Barber mentored Scully, and Scully would follow Barber's advice on being an impartial announcer without blatant "homer" connections. When the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, management had approached Scully about taking a pro-Dodger tone now that the team was the only one in its city (as the minor league Los Angeles teams had done) to which Scully responded weeks later by saying he would stick to objective and factual coverage.


Dodgers (1950–2016)


Brooklyn (1950–1957)

After Ernie Harwell left the Dodgers' radio and television booths for the crosstown Giants before the 1950 season, Scully replaced Harwell, joining Barber and Connie Desmond. When Barber got into a salary dispute with
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
sponsor
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prior to the 1953 World Series, Scully took Barber's spot in the NBC television booth, becoming the youngest person to broadcast a World Series (a record that stands to this day). After Barber subsequently left the Dodgers to work for the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
beginning in
1954 Events January * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown–IBM experiment: The first public demonstration of a machine translation system is held in New York, at the head ...
, Scully became the team's principal announcer, working with Desmond (1954–56), André Baruch (1954–55), Al Helfer (1955–57), and Jerry Doggett (1957). Scully was in the booth when the Brooklyn Dodgers won the 1955 World Series, their only championship in Brooklyn. He announced Dodgers games in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles.


Los Angeles (1958–2016)

Beginning with the 1958 season, Scully accompanied the Dodgers to their new location and quickly became popular in
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
. During the Dodgers' first four seasons in Los Angeles, inexperienced baseball fans had difficulty following the action in the very large
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (also known as the Los Angeles Coliseum or L.A. Coliseum) is a multi-purpose stadium in the Exposition Park, Los Angeles, Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. Conceived as a hal ...
, and it soon became common for them to bring
transistor radio A transistor radio is a small portable radio receiver that uses transistor-based circuitry. Previous portable radios used vacuum tubes, which were bulky, fragile, had a limited lifetime, consumed excessive power and required large heavy batteri ...
s to the games to hear Scully and Jerry Doggett describe the action, a practice that continued even after the team moved to the much smaller
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
for the 1962 baseball season. Radio and television engineers often had difficulty compensating for the sound of Scully's play-by-play reverberating through the stands at Dodgers home games. In 1964, the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
offered Scully the job to replace the recently fired Mel Allen as their lead play-by-play announcer. Scully declined the offer and chose to remain with the Dodgers. By
1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
, his popularity in Los Angeles had become such that Dodger fans voted him the "most memorable personality" in the history of the franchise. Before 1966, local announcers exclusively called the World Series. Typically, the Gillette Company, the
Commissioner of Baseball The commissioner of baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as " organized baseball". Under the direction of the commiss ...
and NBC television would choose the announcers, who would represent each of the teams that were in the World Series for the respective year. For the 1966 World Series, Curt Gowdy called half of each game before ceding the microphone to Vin Scully in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, and
Chuck Thompson Charles Lloyd Thompson (June 10, 1921 – March 6, 2005) was an American sportscaster best known for his broadcasts of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles and the National Football League (NFL)'s History of the Baltimore Colts, Baltimore C ...
in
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
. Scully was not satisfied with the arrangement as he said "What about the road? My fans won't be able to hear me." In Game 1 of the 1966 World Series, Scully called the first 4½ innings. When Gowdy inherited the announcing reins, Scully was so upset that he refused to say another word. Unlike the typical modern style in which multiple sportscasters have an on-air conversation (usually with one functioning as play-by-play announcer and another as color commentator), Scully and his broadcast partners Jerry Doggett (1956–87) and Ross Porter (1977–2004) each called their innings solo, rotating between radio and television, with Scully working the entire game except for the 3rd and 7th innings. When Doggett retired after the 1987 season, he was replaced by Hall-of-Fame Dodgers pitcher Don Drysdale, who previously broadcast games for the
California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
. Drysdale died in his hotel room following a heart attack before a game against the
Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos () were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in the National League (baseball), National League ...
in
1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
, resulting in a very difficult broadcast for Scully and Porter, who were told of the death but could not mention it on-air until Drysdale's family had been notified and the official announcement of the death made. Scully announced the news of his death by saying, "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." Former outfielder Rick Monday succeeded Drysdale in the Dodgers' broadcast crew. On August 28, 2015, the Dodgers announced—via a series of cue cards presented by comedian Jimmy Kimmel on the Dodger Stadium video board—that Scully would be back for the 2016 season, his 67th with the Dodgers. At a press conference August 29, Scully said 2016 would probably be his final year. "I mean, how much longer can you go on fooling people? So yeah, I would be saying, 'Dear God, if you give me next year, I will hang it up. Scully's final regular season game broadcast from Dodger Stadium occurred on September 25, 2016, as the Dodgers defeated the
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
4-3 on a walk-off home run by Charlie Culberson to clinch the National League West Division title. His final game was broadcast from San Francisco's Oracle Park on October 2, 2016.


CBS Sports (1975–1982)

From 1975 to 1982, Scully was employed by
CBS Sports CBS Sports is the American sports programming division of Paramount Global that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried by its broadcast network CBS and streaming service Paramount+, as well as the operator of its cable channel CBS Sports N ...
, where his most prominent assignment was calling
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL) telecasts. He worked alongside several different color analysts, including Sonny Jurgensen, Paul Hornung, Alex Hawkins, George Allen, Jim Brown, John Madden, and Hank Stram. Scully called Dwight Clark's touchdown catch in the
NFC Championship Game The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semifinal National Football League playoffs, playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional Ame ...
on January 10, 1982, which put the
San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...
into Super Bowl XVI. It was the final NFL game he announced. "This was a hell of a game to quit doing football," he commented. Scully also contributed to CBS's PGA Tour golf coverage, usually working with
Pat Summerall George Allen "Pat" Summerall (May 10, 1930 – April 16, 2013) was an American professional American football, football player and television sportscaster who worked for CBS Sports, CBS, Fox Sports (USA), Fox, and ESPN Sunday Night Football, ESP ...
, Ken Venturi, and Ben Wright. From
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
to 1982, he was part of the team that covered the
Masters Tournament The Masters Tournament (usually referred to as simply the Masters, or as the U.S. Masters outside North America) is one of the four men's major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week in April, the Masters is the ...
for CBS. He also worked occasional
tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...
events for CBS. Scully's CBS commitments led to his working a reduced schedule with the Dodgers, who hired Ross Porter to cover for games that Scully couldn't call. Scully also had his first of two stints calling baseball for CBS Radio during this period, broadcasting the
All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...
from
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
to 1982 (usually paired with
Brent Musburger Brent Woody Musburger (born May 26, 1939) is an American sportscaster, currently the lead broadcaster and managing editor at Vegas Stats and Information Network (VSiN). With CBS Sports from 1973 until 1990, he was the original host of their ...
) and the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
from to (alongside Sparky Anderson).


Departure from CBS

According to CBS Sports producer Terry O'Neil in the book ''The Game Behind the Game'', Scully decided to leave CBS in favor of a job calling baseball games for NBC (beginning in 1983) following a dispute over assignment prominence. CBS decided going into the 1981 NFL season that John Madden, whom CBS had hired in 1979 and who had called games alongside Frank Glieber and Gary Bender his first two years, was going to be the star color commentator of their NFL television coverage. But they had trouble figuring out who was going to be his play-by-play partner, since Scully was in a battle with CBS' lead play-by-play announcer
Pat Summerall George Allen "Pat" Summerall (May 10, 1930 – April 16, 2013) was an American professional American football, football player and television sportscaster who worked for CBS Sports, CBS, Fox Sports (USA), Fox, and ESPN Sunday Night Football, ESP ...
for the position. At the time Scully was the number two announcer for CBS, a position he had held since 1975, and was calling games alongside the former
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...
head coach Hank Stram, who had been promoted from CBS' number three broadcast team alongside Curt Gowdy. To resolve the situation, both Scully and Summerall were paired with Madden in four-week stretches, which coincided with each of their respective absences due to other engagements. While Summerall was away calling the US Open tennis tournament for CBS as he did every September, Scully called the first four weeks of the season alongside Madden. After that Scully went on to cover the
National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two Natio ...
and
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
for CBS Radio, as he had done for the past few Octobers, and Summerall returned to the broadcast booth to work with Madden. Scully then teamed with Stram for the remainder of the NFL season. After the eighth week of the NFL season, CBS Sports decided that Summerall meshed more with Madden than Scully did and it named him to be the announcer who would call Super Bowl XVI for CBS on January 24, 1982, at the
Pontiac Silverdome The Pontiac Silverdome (also known as the Silverdome) was a stadium in Pontiac, Michigan. It opened in 1975 and sat on 199 acres (51 ha) of land. When the stadium opened, it featured a fiberglass fabric roof held up by air pressure, the fi ...
. An angry Scully, who felt that his intelligence had been insulted by the move, was assigned as a consolation prize that year's
NFC Championship Game The NFC Championship Game is the annual championship game of the National Football Conference (NFC) and one of the two semifinal National Football League playoffs, playoff games of the National Football League (NFL), the largest professional Ame ...
, which he called alongside Stram. Summerall took Stram's place alongside Jack Buck to call the game over CBS Radio.


NBC Sports (1983–1989)

Outside of
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, Vin Scully is best remembered for his stint as
NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division for NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, that is responsible for sports broadcasts on their broadcast network NBC, the Cable television, cable channels NBC owns, and on Peacock (streaming service) ...
' lead play-by-play announcer for its Major League Baseball coverage from 1983 to 1989. In addition to working Saturday '' Game of the Week'' telecasts for NBC, Scully called three World Series (1984, 1986, and 1988), four
National League Championship Series The National League Championship Series (NLCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. It is contested by the winners of the two Natio ...
(
1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
,
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
,
1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...
, and
1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
), and four All-Star Games (
1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
,
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
,
1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...
, and
1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
). Scully also reworked his Dodgers schedule during this period, broadcasting the team's home games on radio and road games on television, with Fridays and Saturdays off so he could work for NBC. During his stint at NBC, Scully provided the call for one of baseball's most memorable plays when Bill Buckner made a tenth-inning
error An error (from the Latin , meaning 'to wander'Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “error (n.), Etymology,” September 2023, .) is an inaccurate or incorrect action, thought, or judgement. In statistics, "error" refers to the difference between t ...
in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series against the
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
. Scully also called Kirk Gibson's famous
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
during Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. Teaming with Joe Garagiola (who was the full-time lead play-by-play man for NBC's baseball telecasts from 1976 to 1982 before converting into a color commentary role to work with Scully) for NBC telecasts (except in 1989, when he was paired with Tom Seaver after Garagiola left NBC Sports following the 1988 World Series due to a contract dispute), the pair were on hand for several key moments in baseball history: Fred Lynn hitting the first grand slam in
All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...
history (1983); the 1984 Detroit Tigers winning the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
(along the way, he called Tigers pitcher Jack Morris'
no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter or no-hit game is a game in which a team does not record a hit (baseball), hit through conventional methods. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in ...
against the
Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...
on April 7); Ozzie Smith's game-winning home run in Game 5 of the 1985 National League Championship Series; the New York Mets' miracle rally in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series; the 1987 All-Star Game in Oakland, which was deadlocked at 0–0 before Tim Raines broke up the scoreless tie with a triple in the top of the 13th inning; the first official night game in the history of Chicago's Wrigley Field (August 9, 1988); Kirk Gibson's game-winning
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series; and chatting with former President of the United States
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
(who said to Scully, "I've been out of work for six months and maybe there's a future here.") in the booth during the 1989 All-Star Game in
Anaheim Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States, part of the Greater Los Angeles area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the tenth-most ...
as Bo Jackson hit a lead-off home run. On Saturday, June 3, 1989, Scully was doing the play-by-play for the NBC ''Game of the Week'' in St. Louis, where the Cardinals beat the
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
in 10 innings. Meanwhile, the Dodgers were playing a series in
Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, where Scully flew to be on hand to call the Sunday game of the series. However, the Saturday night game between the teams was going into extra innings when Scully arrived in town, so he went to the Astrodome instead of his hotel. He picked up the play-by-play, helping to relieve the other Dodger announcers, who were doing both television and radio, and broadcast the final 13 innings (after already calling 10 innings in St. Louis), as the game went 22 innings. He broadcast 23 innings in one day in two different cities. Laryngitis prevented Scully from calling Game 2 of the 1989 National League Championship Series between the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
and
Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...
. Bob Costas, who was working the
American League Championship Series The American League Championship Series (ALCS) is a best-of-seven playoff and one of two League Championship Series comprising the penultimate round of Major League Baseball's (MLB) postseason. The winner of the ALCS wins the AL pennant and ...
between Oakland and
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
with
Tony Kubek Anthony Christopher Kubek (born October 12, 1935) is an American former professional baseball player and television sportscaster, broadcaster. During his nine-year playing career with the New York Yankees, Kubek played in six World Series in the ...
for NBC, was flown from Toronto to Chicago to fill in that evening (an off day for the ALCS). After the 1989 season, NBC (along with ABC, with whom NBC had shared baseball coverage since 1976), lost the television rights to cover Major League Baseball to CBS. For the first time since 1946, NBC did not televise baseball. In the aftermath, Scully said of NBC losing baseball, "It's a passing of a great American tradition. It is sad. I really and truly feel that. It will leave a vast window, to use a Washington word, where people will not get Major League Baseball and I think that's a tragedy." Scully also served as an announcer for NBC's golf coverage from 1983 to 1990, usually teaming with Lee Trevino.


After NBC (1990–2016)

After the National League Championship Series in 1989, Scully's NBC contract was up and he left to focus primarily on his duties with the Dodgers. Scully also returned to being the national radio announcer for the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
, since CBS Radio gave him the position that Jack Buck had vacated in order to become the primary announcer for CBS's television coverage of Major League Baseball. Scully worked the event from through , teaming with Johnny Bench for the first four years and Jeff Torborg for the final three. After
ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternatively branded platform-agnostically as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the banner "SportsRadio ESPN". The netw ...
acquired the World Series radio rights from CBS in 1998, Scully was offered a continued play-by-play role but declined. The final World Series game that Scully called was Game 7 of the 1997 World Series between the Florida Marlins and
Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. Since , the team ...
. From 1991 to 1996, Scully broadcast the annual golf Skins Game for ABC. He also called the Senior Skins Game for ABC from 1992 to 2000, as well as various golf events for TBS during this period. In 1999, Scully was the master of ceremonies for ''
Major League Baseball All-Century Team In 1999, the Major League Baseball All-Century Team was chosen by popular vote of Sports fan, fans. To select the team, a panel of experts first compiled a list of the 100 greatest Major League Baseball (MLB) players from the 20th century. Over tw ...
'' before the start of Game 2 of the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
. For health reasons, Scully no longer called most non-playoff games played east of Denver beginning around
2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
. He missed most of the Dodgers' opening homestand of the 2012 MLB season (the first five out of six games) because of an illness, returning to the announcers' booth on April 15, 2012, which was the 65th anniversary of
Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first Black American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the Baseball color line, ...
's breaking of the color barrier in baseball. It was only the second time that Scully had missed a
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
home opener in his career with the team; the first time was when he was busy broadcasting the Masters golf tournament for CBS in
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
. By his final season in 2016, Scully called approximately 100 games per season (all home games and select road games in San Francisco, San Diego, and Anaheim) for both
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
radio station KLAC and television outlet SportsNet LA. Scully was simulcast for the first three innings of each of his appearances, then announced the remaining innings only for the television audience. If Scully was calling the game, Charley Steiner took over play-by-play on radio beginning with the fourth inning, with Rick Monday as color commentator. If Scully was not calling the game, either Joe Davis or Steiner would call the entire game on television with
Orel Hershiser Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1983 to 2000. He later became a pitching coach for the Texas Rangers from 2002 to 2005 and a br ...
and
Nomar Garciaparra Anthony Nomar Garciaparra (; born July 23, 1973) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current SportsNet LA analyst. After playing parts of nine seasons as an All-Star shortstop for the Boston Red Sox, he played shortstop, Third ...
on color commentary, while Monday, now doing play-play, joined Kevin Kennedy on radio.


Retirement

On January 31, 2016, Scully announced that he planned to retire from broadcasting after the conclusion of the 2016 season; his final game was the team's October 2 finale at
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. Scully left open the possibility of calling postseason games (but not the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
) if the Dodgers were to advance; in September, however, Scully stated that he would retire after the end of the regular season and not call postseason games because he did not want to "say goodbye 12 different times". Scully was assigned a total of six road games for the 2016 season: the opening game in San Diego, two games in Anaheim, and the entirety of the three-game regular-season closing series in San Francisco. Scully was honored by the Dodgers during their September 23 home game against the Rockies, which featured a pre-game ceremony that paid tribute to his career. The ceremony included speeches by Commissioner of Baseball Rob Manfred,
Sandy Koufax Sanford Koufax (; né Braun; born December 30, 1935), nicknamed "the Left Arm of God", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers from 195 ...
, Clayton Kershaw, Mayor Eric Garcetti, the team's Spanish play-by-play man Jaime Jarrín (who took over Scully's distinction as the longest-tenured broadcaster in 2017),
Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Kevin Costner, various accolades, including two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and a Primeti ...
, and Scully himself. The team also unveiled that Kirk Gibson's 1988 World Series home run had been named the most memorable Vin Scully call in a fan vote. His final home game was on September 25, 2016, against the visiting
Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. Th ...
. The Dodgers ended up winning on a 10th inning walk-off home run by Charlie Culberson and in doing so clinched the NL West Division title. The final broadcast of his career was the Dodgers' October 2 game at AT&T Park against the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
. Scully's commentary during his final game was simulcast in its entirety on radio, instead of only the first three innings. After the game, he offered a prayer and a final message: The following season, the Dodgers advanced to the
World Series The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
for the first time in 29 years. Despite many Dodgers fans petitioning Scully to come out of retirement, including Fox Sports announcer Joe Buck (who was quoted as saying, "I swear on my late father, to have Vin come do some of the series with us and in my place would be an honor"), Scully declined, preferring to keep a low profile and responding that "I've done enough of them." Scully did, however, take part in the first pitch ceremony prior to Game 2 with Steve Yeager and Fernando Valenzuela, teammates on the Dodgers team that won the
1981 World Series The 1981 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1981 Major League Baseball season, 1981 season. The 78th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American Lea ...
. In 2020, he was auctioning sports memorabilia in part to donate to neuromuscular research. After the Dodgers World Series win in 2020, it was announced that Scully would narrate the team's year-end championship documentary.


Other appearances

In 1970, ABC Sports producer Roone Arledge tried to lure Scully to his network to call play-by-play for the then-new '' Monday Night Football'' games, but Scully's commitment to the Dodgers forced him to reject the offer. Besides his sportscasting work, Scully was the uncredited narrator for the short-lived NBC sitcom '' Occasional Wife''. Scully also co-hosted the Tournament of Roses Parade with
Elizabeth Montgomery Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery (April 15, 1933 – May 18, 1995) was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She portrayed the good witch List of Bewitched characters#Samantha Stephens, Samantha Step ...
for ABC in 1967, served as the host for the NBC game show '' It Takes Two'' in 1969–70, and in 1973 hosted ''The Vin Scully Show'', a weekday afternoon talk-variety show on CBS. In 1977, he hosted the prime-time ''Challenge of the Sexes'' for CBS. Scully was the announcer in the popular Sony PlayStation-exclusive ''MLB'' video game series by 989 Sports for a number of years. Scully retired from announcing for video games after '' MLB 2005''.
Matt Vasgersian Matt Vasgersian (né Vasgerdsian; '; September 28, 1967) is an American sportscaster and television host. Vasgersian is the alternative play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Angels, as well as a studio host for MLB Network and Major Leagu ...
, Eric Karros, and Steve Lyons (and formerly Dave Campbell and Rex Hudler) took over as the lead announcers in the video game series, which was retitled ''MLB: The Show''. Scully appears as himself in the 1999 film '' For Love of the Game'', has a brief cameo (along with then-Dodgers partner Jerry Doggett) in the 1961 film '' Bachelor in Paradise'', appears as a CBS news reporter in the 1960 film '' Wake Me When It's Over'', provides the opening narration in the 1966 film '' Fireball 500'', and can be heard calling baseball games in the films '' Experiment in Terror'' (1962), '' Zebra in the Kitchen'' (1965), '' The Party'' (1968), '' Fever Pitch'' (2005), '' The Bucket List'' (2007), and '' Licorice Pizza'' (2021), as well as in episodes of television series including '' General Electric Theater'', '' Alcoa Premiere'', '' Mister Ed'', '' The Joey Bishop Show'', '' The Fugitive'', '' Highway to Heaven'', and '' Brooklyn Bridge''. The surname of the Dana Scully character on the television show ''
The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The original series aired from September 10, 1993, to Ma ...
'' is an homage to Vin Scully, as the show's creator Chris Carter is a Dodgers fan; Scully himself can be heard calling a game in the Season 6 episode " The Unnatural". In 1965, Scully recorded two
spoken word Spoken word is an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a 20th-century continuation of an oral tradition, ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetic ...
songs as part of the album '' The Sound of the Dodgers'': "What Is A Dodger?" and "The Story Of The L. A. Dodgers".


Impersonators

Harry Shearer impersonated Scully in a sketch for ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
'', and has used the voice for ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'' when the storyline includes the fictional team the Springfield Isotopes.
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
broadcaster
Jon Miller Jon Miller (born October 11, 1951) is an American sportscaster, known primarily for his broadcasts of Major League Baseball. Since 1997, he has been employed as a play-by-play announcer for the San Francisco Giants. He was also a baseball ann ...
is known for his impersonation of Scully.


Awards and honors

Scully received the Ford Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982. He was honored with a Lifetime Achievement
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
for sportscasting, and was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1995. The National Sports Media Association (formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association) named Scully as National Sportscaster of the Year four times (1965, 1978, 1982, 2016) and California Sportscaster of the Year 33 times, and inducted him into its Hall of Fame in 1991. He was the 1992 Hall of Fame inductee of the American Sportscasters Association, which also named him Sportscaster of the Century (2000) and top sportscaster of all-time on its Top 50 list (2009). The California Sports Hall of Fame inducted Scully in 2008. Scully was inducted into the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2009. On May 11, 2009, he was awarded the Ambassador Award of Excellence by the LA Sports & Entertainment Commission. On an episode of
MLB Network MLB Network is an American television sports channel dedicated to baseball. It is primarily owned by Major League Baseball, with TNT Sports (United States), TNT Sports, Comcast's NBC Sports Group, Charter Communications, and Cox Communications h ...
's series ''Prime 9'', about the nine greatest baseball broadcasters of all time, Scully was named No. 1. Scully has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
at 6675 Hollywood Blvd. Since
2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...
, the press box at
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
has been named for Scully, and a street within the team's former Dodgertown spring training facility in
Vero Beach, Florida Vero Beach is a city in and the county seat of Indian River County, Florida, United States. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 16,354. Nicknamed "The Hibiscus City", Vero is situated about south ...
was named "Vin Scully Way". WFUV, the Fordham University radio station that Scully helped found, presents an annual Vin Scully Lifetime Achievement Award for sports broadcasting. Scully himself was the inaugural recipient of the award in 2008. Scully served as the Grand Marshal for the 2014 Tournament of Roses Parade. Also, he participated aboard the Los Angeles Dodgers' 50th anniversary float in the 2008 Tournament of Roses Parade. On September 5, 2014, Bud Selig presented Scully with the
Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award The Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award is awarded by the Commissioner of Baseball, commissioner of baseball, the chief executive of Major League Baseball (MLB), to a group or person who has made a "major impact on the sport" of baseball. I ...
. He was the 14th recipient and (after Rachel Robinson) second non-player to receive the award, which was created to recognize accomplishments and contributions of historical significance to the game of baseball. Several honors were bestowed in 2016, Scully's final year. On January 29, the
Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the Legislature, lawmaking body for the Government of Los Angeles, city government of Los Angeles, California, the second largest city in the United States. It has 15 members who each represent the 15 city council ...
voted unanimously to rename Elysian Park Avenue, which changed the address of
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
to 1000 Vin Scully Ave. July 8 was dubbed "Vin Scully Day" by the acting
governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...
, Kevin de León. During the pre-game ceremony on September 23, 2016, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti presented Vin Scully with the key to the city. On November 22, Scully received the
Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by decision of the president of the United States to "any person recommended to the President ...
, the highest civilian honor given by the President of the United States. In 2017, Scully's commentary for the final Brooklyn Dodgers/
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
game in 1957 was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Also in 2017, Scully won the Icon Award as part of that year's ESPY Awards ceremony. At Game 2 of the 2017 World Series, being played at Dodger Stadium, Scully participated in a pre-game ceremony; addressing the crowd over the PA system, he implied that he was about to throw the ceremonial first pitch, and introduced Steve Yeager to serve as a ceremonial catcher. However, Scully then claimed that he could not actually pitch because he had hurt his
rotator cuff The rotator cuff (SITS muscles) is a group of muscles and their tendons that act to stabilize the human shoulder and allow for its extensive range of motion. Of the seven scapulohumeral muscles, four make up the rotator cuff. The four muscles a ...
, resulting in him introducing the actual ceremonial pitcher, Fernando Valenzuela. Scully also uttered his famous introduction, "It's time for Dodger baseball!"


Personal life

In 1972, Scully's 35-year-old wife Joan Crawford died of an accidental medical overdose; the couple had been married for 15 years. In late 1973, he married Sandra Hunt, who had two children of her own, and they soon had a child together. Scully's eldest son, Michael, died in a helicopter crash at the age of 33 while working for the ARCO Transportation Company. He was inspecting oil pipelines for leaks near Fort Tejon, California, in the immediate aftermath of the
1994 Northridge earthquake The 1994 Northridge earthquake affected Greater Los Angeles, California, on January 17, 1994, at 04:30:55 PST. The epicenter of the moment 6.7 () blind thrust earthquake was beneath the San Fernando Valley. Lasting approximately 8 seconds ...
. Although Michael's death still haunted him, Scully, a devout
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, said in numerous interviews that he credited his religious faith and being able to dive back into his work with helping him ease the burden and grief from losing his wife and son. He encouraged devotion to the Virgin Mary, saying, "Her prayers are more powerful than those of the rest of heaven combined. No one was closer or more devoted to Christ on earth, so it only makes sense to see the same thing in heaven. Now, the Blessed Virgin seeks to help her spiritual children get home to spend eternity with her Son." In 2016, Scully narrated an audio recording of the Rosary for Catholic Athletes for Christ in which he recites the Rosary mysteries and leads a group of responders. In November 2017, Scully stated that he would "never watch another NFL game again," due to some of the league's players kneeling during the playing of the national anthem prior to games. Scully had four children, two stepchildren, twenty-one grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. He resided in
Thousand Oaks, California Thousand Oaks is the second-largest city in Ventura County, California, located in the northwestern part of Greater Los Angeles. Approximately from the city of Los Angeles and from Downtown Los Angeles, it is named after the many oak trees pr ...
, and attended St. Jude the Apostle Church in Westlake Village, California. He was a second cousin of the former
Lord Mayor of Dublin The Lord Mayor of Dublin () is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The incumbent, since December 2024, is Fine Gael councillor Emma ...
, Mary Freehill. Scully and his second wife Sandra were married for 48 years until Sandra's death from
amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...
on January 3, 2021.


Death

On August 2, 2022, Scully died at home in Hidden Hills, California, at age 94. His funeral was held at St. Jude the Apostle Roman Catholic Church, in Westlake Village, California, on August 8. Upon his death, Rob Manfred, the
Commissioner of Baseball The commissioner of baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as " organized baseball". Under the direction of the commiss ...
, released a statement: The Dodgers had just beaten the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
at Oracle Park when Scully's death was announced by public address announcer Renel Brooks-Moon. The Giants, who had been Scully's favorite team growing up, paid tribute to Scully on their video board while the Dodgers team gathered on the field. Afterwards, Dodgers fans left tributes to Scully at the entrance of
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a ballpark in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a ...
where the address bore his name. Broadcasters, sports teams, politicians, and athletes paid tribute to Scully as well. On August 6, the Dodgers held a pre-game ceremony during which a tribute video was played and photo montage was shown. Outside the television booth, from where Scully broadcast games, hung a banner saying "We'll miss you". Manager Dave Roberts ended the pre-game ceremony with Scully's iconic catch phrase: "It's time for Dodger baseball!"


References


Further reading


Books

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Interviews

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Articles

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External links


Vin Scully: 1982 Ford C. Frick Award winner
at the Baseball Hall of Fame
Vin Scully
at the Radio Hall of Fame * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Scully, Vin 1927 births 2022 deaths American people of Irish descent American radio sports announcers American television sports announcers American game show hosts Brooklyn Dodgers announcers Catholics from California Catholics from New York (state) College baseball announcers in the United States College basketball announcers in the United States College football announcers Fordham Rams football announcers Fordham Rams baseball players Fordham University alumni Fordham Preparatory School alumni Ford C. Frick Award recipients American golf commentators Los Angeles Dodgers announcers Major League Baseball broadcasters Military personnel from New York City NFL announcers People from Hidden Hills, California People from Westlake Village, California People from Ventura County, California People from Washington Heights, Manhattan Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients Sportspeople from the Bronx American tennis commentators United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy sailors WFUV people