Through the many stories I’ve written and the millions of stories of others, there has been the need to have the hook. i.e. the cleverly-worded headline that piques interest. That’s why it’s telling that this column has just a two-word headline and that it is simply and profoundly the name of a man considered by many to be the greatest announcer in the history of baseball: Vin Scully. You see, after a spotty career that spans just 67 years, Mr. Scully will call his last game in October, a reality that acts as a catalyst in evoking memories for some of those closest to him.
Greatest announcer in the history of baseball? The question mark is not in regard to Scully deserving this title; there is no question in the minds of most baseball fans that he does. No, the question mark is there because calling him the greatest announcer in the history of baseball truly doesn’t capture the magnitude of his impact.
Baseball gets into your soul, where you live, what you feel about life — its little rewards, its pain, another step or two forward, a few steps back, perseverance, humility. Honor. It is such an incredibly personal game for those that love it. Baseball is also uniquely American, many times paralleling that which is occurring in the larger society outside its walls. This was likely more the case decades ago, when baseball was the dominant sport in the country, when it seemed to be a simpler time. Maybe that’s why Vin Scully leaving baseball is even more poignant. In some ways, we’re forever losing our connection to that time remembered as so special.
There is also something else very special about Mr. Scully. By all accounts, he is a genuinely good person. He treats everyone with dignity. He is a man of quiet faith, living it rather than talking it. And after all these years he is still chivalrously in love with his wife. As Bob Costas said about Vin Scully, “It’s like we can’t get enough of this and we can’t stop doing the exact opposite.”