Vin Scully: Dodgers, Giants fans alike pay homage to famed broadcaster
SAN FRANCISCO— Vin Scully’s iconic voice on the videoboard welcomed a sellout crowd to game No. 162, the regular-season finale, yes, and more notably the last of his decorated, hall of fame broadcasting career.
“It’s time for Giant-Dodger baseball, the greatest rivalry in all of professional sports,” Scully declared.
Scully attended morning Mass in the ballpark as is his usual Sunday routine and then headed for his booth to work as he has done for an astounding 67 years — exactly 80 years after he became a Giants fan at age 8 in the Bronx.
“It was if it was ordained that I would do this game,” Scully said.
San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy cherished his chance to visit with Scully last week at Dodger Stadium and to be part of Scully’s special farewell Sunday.
“This is his last game, and we’re honoured to think he’d come up here, 80 years to the day that he became a Giants fan,” Bochy said. “That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it? Not just a tremendous body of work, but how long he’s been doing it and how great he still is. So it’s pretty cool.”
Fans in the sellout crowd turned to look up at Scully with their standing ovation and held signs as a Scully video welcomed fans on the scoreboard shortly before first pitch at AT&T Park, where he has been riding in and out of the ballpark on Hall of Famer Willie Mays’ golf cart and had some time to reminisce with the Say Hey Kid on Saturday.
The 88-year-old Scully politely declined any kind of on-field celebration offered by the Giants. San Francisco then jumped to a 2-0 lead in the first.
“Just as it has been for two years, the Dodgers are in trouble at AT&T Park,” Scully said.
“The sun has broken through the clouds and it is shining on the Giants for the moment.”
Scully handled the Giants’ broadcast in the third inning, then said while San Francisco fans might con- sider it no big deal, it was for him, noting his appreciation of the thoughtful gesture.
Mike Krukow and the other Giants broadcasters told Scully how much they loved him and led “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” in the adjoining booth from Scully during the seventh-inning stretch.
In the sixth, amid all the reflection and fanfare, Scully reminded his audience he was supposed to be handling play-by-play.
“It has been a party, a retirement party,” he said, “and it has been marvellous.”