Farewell to "Scooter"
If you were too young to have seen him play, you still knew him from his days calling the Yankees games. You also might know him from his ads for The Money Store in the 1980's or even as the voice calling the baseball game on Meat Loaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light".
For me, and I'm sure many other Yankees fans, it's like losing a beloved grandfather or uncle. He had many partners in the booth, but I always think of him with Bobby Murcer, Jim "Kitty" Kaat, and Ken Singleton. Listening to Phil was just as entertaining as watching the game. He didn't so much announce as just talk to us, tell rambling stories of his playing days, announce birthdays and anniversaries of Yankees fans, and of course there was his signature phrase, "Holy Cow!", used not only to describe everything a great play on the field or a ball over the fence, but as a general expression of amazement and wonder at whatever it was he was talking about. He was known to mangle a player's name or a phrase here or there, but that was part of his charm. Listening to Phil call the game was like like watching the game with your grandfather. There was an intimacy there that few broadcasters have these days, except for another legend in broadcasting, the Dodgers' Vin Scully. He wasn't just a broadcaster, he was a true fan of the Yankees, and that came through loud and clear every time he called a game. He was one of us and we all loved him for it.
God bless, Scooter.
Trackback
There are currently no trackbacks for this item.
Use this TrackBack url to ping this item (right-click, copy link target). If your blog does not support Trackbacks you can manually add your trackback by using this form.
Comments
Add Comment