With Vin Scully retiring and still telling tales as he has for over 65 years, it’s not a surprise that fans are soaking in his final season. And while Scully is a bit embarrassed by all of the attention, he still does his job on SportsNet LA even though most Los Angelenos can’t watch him due to the SportsNet LA dispute.

But he still pushes on weaving stories into the action whether it’s explaining what “GOAT” means or talking about Madison Bumgarner’s encounter with a rattlesnake. After hearing him tell this tales, it’s understandable that fans and media alike are starting a season-long appreciation of one of sports broadcasting’s “GOAT.”

And while some may not understand what the fuss is all about, just think how long Scully has been calling Dodgers games. He spans from the 1950’s when the Dodgers were in Brooklyn to now plus all of the history and technological advances that have been made in that time. From going to when radio was the dominant medium to black and white television changing to color and now to high definition television, not to mention the advent of computers, mobile phones and tablets making it easier for out-of-town fans to watch and listen to Vin.

Before last night’s ESPN telecast of the Dodgers hosting the San Francisco Giants, Karl Ravech, Aaron Boone, Tim Kurkjian and Dallas Braden gave their thoughts on Scully:

http://youtu.be/TaV5HHiLPu0

And as the season goes along, there will be a clamoring for Scully to call the World Series. Joe Buck told Sports Illustrated that he would be happy to step aside to allow Scully to call one more Fall Classic.

“If he knocked on the door of the broadcast booth, I would leave. It would be all his. But he does not want to do it and I can pretty much understand why. It’s just not his way, or his style. He doesn’t want it to feel like it’s about him – that’s not who he is. Now we know that is his last year, it makes all the sense in the world for something like this to happen.”

It’s not the first time this has been broached. Back in 2011, Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News asked Buck about the same subject and the answer was the same:

“I’d happily step aside to hear his voice (on the World Series). I would not fight that at all. That’s just how I grew up.”

So as we hear Vin call his final season, we know that we won’t see another like him or have the impact on a team and its fanbase as Scully. That’s why fans and media alike are paying special attention to his calls because once he leaves, there will be a giant hole that cannot be filled.

About Ken Fang

Ken has been covering the sports media in earnest at his own site, Fang's Bites since May 2007 and at Awful Announcing since March 2013.

He provides a unique perspective having been an award-winning radio news reporter in Providence and having worked in local television.

Fang celebrates the four Boston Red Sox World Championships in the 21st Century, but continues to be a long-suffering Cleveland Browns fan.

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