The Man Who Sounds Like Baseball
No one is ever going to confuse me with someone who actually likes the Los Angeles Dodgers, but I will say that one of the perks of living in Southern California is the opportunity to hear Vin Scully’s voice on television—and in the Dodgers Stadium bathrooms. There are some other good play-by-play men in the game, but in my opinion, Scully has been the best. He has announced that he will likely retire from the booth at the end of next season. Here’s to hoping that the Dodgers will honor him with a fantastic farewell tour and a monument befitting the man whose voice, in the words of my wife, “Sounds like baseball.” She said that when she hears Scully’s voice, it feels like summertime.
Here’s a bit of trivia: with over 60 years of experience, Scully called many memorable moments, including a home run in the 1988 World Series that will not receive further mention here—may it long be forgotten. He was not only involved with baseball games, however. He called the 1982 NFC championship game for CBS that resulted in one of the greatest finishes in NFL history when San Francisco 49ers’ quarterback Joe Montana rolled right, threw the ball to the back of the end zone, and Dwight Clark made “The Catch” against the Dallas Cowboys. So even if he worked for the hated Dodgers for six decades, Scully can’t be all that bad. Here is the that final drive with Scully’s play-by-play commentary.


Another thing to note: Scully was always great at letting the crowd do the talking. After a home run, or in this instance a dramatic touchdown, he was intent on not speaking over them. After the TD, Scully said nothing for 30 seconds. ...This says much about the aesthetics of broadcasting, because the most colorful announcer ever with the spoken word used his own silence at the appropriate time to give the listener the best descriptor of what just unfolded through the energy and craze of the crowd.
Comment by Confession Context — August 2, 2009 @ 12:31 pm