LA Remembers Vin Scully, Legendary Dodgers Broadcaster

Here's classic Vin Scully: On Sept. 23, 2016, the Hall of Fame Dodgers broadcaster turned Vin Scully Appreciation Day into an appreciation of fans, writing what amounted to a love letter to those who "were simply always there" for him, writing "You folks have truly been the 'Wind Beneath My Wings.'"

"Since 1958, you and I have grown up together through the good times and the bad," he wrote. "The transistor radio is what bound us together. Were you at the Coliseum when we sang "Happy Birthday" to an umpire? Were you among the crowd that groaned at one of my puns? Did you kindly laugh at one of my little jokes?"

You can read a copy of the letter below:

Jaime Jarrín, the Hall of Fame Spanish-language Dodgers broadcaster, shared his memories of Vin Scully with our newsroom's public affairs show, AirTalk. Here's what he had to say (Jarrín's remarks have been edited for length):

He was everything to me. He was my mentor, he was one of my advisors, he was my teacher and above all, he was my friend. He was very special to me.

Tactically, he was the architect of my professional broadcasting career. Everything that I have gained, I think, belongs to him. We were very close. There are three times [in my life] that I have cried a lot. I cried when my son died in 1988. I cried when my wife passed away a few years ago in Arizona. I couldn’t stop crying last night when [I got] the sad news of Vin passing away.

The advice he gave me in the beginning was, "Jaime, it doesn't matter if you have done 1,000 games, be prepared, study the game a lot. Devote at least two-and-a-half, three, four hours a day before the game because you never know what's going to happen. Please be careful, remember that millions of people are listening to you."

So I tried to follow his school of broadcasting: very calm, maintain a rhythm, don't be too excited, don't be screaming. Nobody can imitate Vin Scully. But I was able to follow his school of broadcasting, and I am very proud of that.

At Dodger Stadium, we always had dinner together before the games... and then on the road is where we really got to know each other. It was those precious moments that I really appreciated how great he was. Many times, after the game, we will have a glass of wine, some crackers and cheeses, it will be Vin, [Dodgers traveling secretary] Billy DeLury, Joe Amalfitano and myself, and we heard him telling so many anecdotes of baseball, things that he went through since he been in the industry.

Those conversations are something that I appreciate so much. It was very unique. Very unique, very special.

Read more about their special friendship over the years in a longer retrospective from Jarrín here.

A memorial of candles, flowers, signs and more grows for Vin Scully in front of a welcome sign near Dodger Stadium.

(Courtesy of Gary Leonard)

A steady stream of people have been flowing by the big Dodger Stadium sign on the corner of Vin Scully Avenue and Stadium Way to pay their respects to a legend.

Alex Figueroa grew up listening to Vin Scully call the Dodgers games since he was a little kid.

“He meant the whole world to me," Figueroa said. "Every 6:45, 7:10 game time, ready to go. The stories he told about each and every player. How much he loved everybody — all the fans, all the players as individuals.”

Vivian Perez stopped by on her way to work at the Dodgers Press Box. She said she's "heartbroken" over the passing of her "idol."

Kelly Rodriguez described the longtime announcer as an L.A. icon.

The big blue sign with Scully’s name is adorned with remembrances: jerseys, candles, balloons and an array of blue and white flowers.

Over in Hollywood, fans decorated Scully's star on the Walk of Fame with Dodger blue and white flowers and candles.

Fans commemorate the loss of legendary sports broadcaster Vin Scully by decorated his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

(Courtesy of Gary Leonard)

"Two and two to Harvey Kuenn, one strike away. Sandy, into his windup, here's the pitch…swung on and missed; the perfect game!" Vin Scully, calling the final inning of Dodgers pitcher Sandy Koufax's perfect game on Sept. 9, 1965.

With Kirk Gibson injured, out of the starting lineup and called on to hit in the bottom of the ninth — the impossible happened. Gibson hit a homerun that Vin Scully described as a “High fly ball into right field. She is gone!” leading the crowd in a frenzy and Scully speechless for nearly a minute.

Vin Scully was there to call Hank Aaron’s recording-breaking 715th home run, surpassing former home run leader Babe Ruth. Aaron and the Atlanta Braves were playing the Dodgers at home. “What a marvelous moment for the country and the world,” Scully said while the new home run king was adored by his fans and parents at home plate.

Dodger pitcher Clayton Kershaw shared his thoughts about Scully, saying he led "a tremendous life and legacy."

Dodger baseball great Steve Garvey spoke to the Major League Baseball network about Vin Scully:

Vin Scully called what many consider to the best sports moment in Los Angeles history: the walk-off home run by an injured Kirk Gibson during Game 1 of the 1988 World Series against the Oakland Athletics.

Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts spoke about Vin Scully after the game with the San Francisco Giants.

My favorite Vin Scully call? I'll go with his greeting to Dodger fans at the start of every ballgame.

"Well, hi, everybody — and a very pleasant good evening to you wherever you may be!"

I heard it thousands of times, starting with my first transistor radio long ago. It meant summer was here. Time to — as Vinnie would also say — "pull up a chair and spend part of Wednesday with us" (or Thursday or whatever day it was).

I always brought my radio to Dodger Stadium when I caught a ballgame, but I didn't have to. Everybody else in the stands had their radios and we were all listening to Vin Scully.

I met him once, but just to shake his hand. I don't think I said anything — it was always better to let Vinnie do the talking.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were in San Francisco playing the Giants Tuesday night.

Word of Vin Scully's passing came early in the game, and while it was announced on TV and radio, no announcement was made at Oracle Park to avoid impacting the outcome of the game. But after the game, the Giants paid tribute to the voice of their chief rival.

Fans leaving Oracle Park were seen stopping to honor Scully with cheers and applause.