Please Don’t Tell Me Vin Scully Is Next

NFL fans all over the country shed a little tear (or sigh of relief) that John Madden has announced his retirement from announcing. The former Raiders head coach known for his fear of flying will be missed for a number of reasons by all. Personally, I am not a strong lover or hater of Mr. Madden but was always amused by his personality.

Here was a guy that obviously loved the sound of his own voice. That alone was pretty comical and part of his “charm” if you will. Better yet, his phallic references and crude innuendos while announcing were certainly intentional. I remember suggesting a drinking game to some friends where you had to drink every time Madden said something that could be dirty. I would imagine that one could be quite lit by the end of the first quarter in this case.

I once tried to read one of his books and barely got past the first chapter. As much as I love football, the NFL, and sports in general I just had a hard time with the whole toot-your-own-horn mantra. But, the way I’ve felt about Madden has never been fueled by strong emotion as I mentioned – no love, no hate. I guess I just assumed that he’d always be around. Whether or not you liked John Madden you must agree that he had one of those unmistakable voices. His redundant and often silly comments were a fun part of NFL games.

Madden’s retirement only brings the fact that Vin Scully’s years are numbered a more real possibility for me. As a Los Angeles native that has followed the Dodgers since I can remember this is a very scary thing for me. When Vin hangs it up it will be even harder than when Chick Hearn left. Scully is one of the MLB’s treasures. He came with the Dodgers from Brooklyn and has been part of the organization since they’ve been in Los Angeles. We absolutely love him. I gave the account at the preseason game last year many times where he so humbly announced, “It’s only me” to a crowd of around 100,000. I still get goose bumps about that. (Yes, I am in on how dorky that is but I just can’t help it.) If anyone has any suggestions how to cope with Vin’s retirement please let me know. I need to start preparing myself for the inevitable.