LONGTIME PA ANNOUNCER FOR PADRES, SOCKERS

•

1942-2023

For nearly two decades, John Demott was one of the most recognizable voices in San Diego sports circles.

Demott was the Padres’ public address announcer from 1970-85. He also handled PA duties for the city’s professional basketball, soccer and hockey teams and did color commentary on Chargers radio broadcasts. He frequently was the radio play-by-play voice for the Jaws and Sockers of the North American Soccer League as well as the indoor Sockers.

Demott, 80, died last Sunday at his home in Palm Beach, Fla., following a short illness.

Demott began his career as a childhood actor and launched his career in radio shortly after graduating from Burbank High School. Demott was doing news and sports at a radio station in Yuma and doubling as the public address announcer for Arizona Western College when he was hired by San Diego’s KCBQ radio station in 1967 to do news and sports reports.

“I was 24 and had no idea where my career was heading,” Demott said years ago. “It just sort of took off with the Padres.”

Demott was hired by the Padres to be their public address announcer before the start of the 1970 season.

Demott quickly developed his own style while delivering the starting lineup every night — most notably introducing the Padres’ shortstop with “NO. 11, ENZO ….. HERNANDEZ.” With the Sockers, he popularized “Double-deuce, triple-e, the one and only Juli Veee.”

“I take public address announcing very seriously,” said longtime Padres’ play-byplay announcer Ted Leitner, “because that is the first thing I did. I’ve always loved it. And I’ve always been a critic of PA announcers who scream and believe they’re who the fans came to hear.

“I always had respect for John on the Padres’ PA. He played it straight. He used inflection without yelling and screaming. He loved what he did. And he took it very seriously. There are young Padres fans out there who can recite Demott’s introduction of Hernandez because their fathers and grandfathers passed it down.”

Demott also was involved in one of the greatest incidents in Padres history. He was on the microphone during the 1974 home opener when new Padres owner Ray Kroc — whose purchase of the ballclub the previous January may have saved the franchise for San Diego — entered the PA booth and took the mic.

Legend has it that Kroc grabbed the microphone from Demott. The announcer over the years said Kroc was scheduled to speak to the crowd. Either way, no one could anticipate what was coming.

“I have some good news and bad news,” Kroc began. “The good news is that you loyal fans have outstripped Los Angeles. They had 31,000 on opening night. We have nearly 40,000.”

At that moment, a streaker ran across the field. And Kroc went off.

“Get him out of here,” Kroc screamed into the live microphone. “Take him to jail.” Then Kroc yelled … “The bad news is I’ve never seen such stupid ballplaying in my life.”

The crowd reacted with cheers. Demott regained control of the microphone after Padres President Buzzie Bavasi entered the PA booth. A day later, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn ordered Kroc to issue a public apology.

Demott was the Padres’ PA announcer throughout their National League championship season of 1984. In addition to his PA and color commentator duties, Demott also worked for the KSDO, KOGO and KSON radio stations.

Demott then moved to Portland, where he was the play-by-play radio voice of the NBA’S Trail Blazers. He later served as the play-by-play voice and assistant general manager of the Pacific Coast League’s Hawaii Islanders and Colorado Springs Sky Sox before becoming the PA voice of the NHL’S Florida Panthers. He was a member of the Palm Beach County Sports Commission for 30 years and was inducted into the Palm Beach Sports Hall of Fame.

Over the years, the Padres invited Demott to return for reunions as well as Tony Gwynn’s retirement ceremony. Demott is survived by sons Randy Demott and Chris Demott and three granddaughters.