Skip to content

67 years strong: Reliving Vin Scully's greatest calls

Danny Moloshok / REUTERS

Vin Scully's received enough tributes this week from players, colleagues, and fans alike. There's not much left to add - so, before we enjoy his final broadcasts this weekend, it's time to let the man speak for himself.

Here are the memorable moments, clutch performances, and some rare gems from Scully's 67 years in the booth. Enjoy Vin's greatest calls.

Oct. 8, 1956: Don Larsen's perfect game

"No runs, no hits, no errors - in fact, nothing at all!"

Normally, Scully let the roar of the crowd speak for him after a historic moment. In this case, he goes a different route, calmly giving us a history lesson while the Yankees fans' joy reverberates through the radio. Like every great conductor, Scully makes all those instruments work in perfect harmony. Click here for his call of the entire ninth inning.

May 12, 2004: Alex Cora's 18-pitch at-bat

"You ever see so much excitement - and nothing has happened?"

An otherwise nondescript May at-bat turns memorable thanks in part to the call. Vin talks throughout, but still lets the crowd and picture dictate his pace and tone so the tension in our living room builds at the same pace.

May 22, 1999: McGwire's moonshot

"It hit the top of the roof!"

This was only the fourth baseball ever hit out of Dodger Stadium during a game, so Scully's amazement is as pure as yours. Bonus points for the always formal broadcaster calling Willie Stargell by his given name of "Wilver."

May 2, 1987: Tim Raines returns

"One of the most incredible stories of the year, in any sport! The first day back!"

Raines, a victim of collusion by the owners as a free agent in 1986, wasn't allowed to re-sign with the Expos until May 1, 1987. A day after signing his new deal, Raines showed up at Shea Stadium and, despite having no spring training, put on a show that finished with the game-winning grand slam off Jesse Orosco. Scully, calling the game on national TV with Joe Garagiola, is rubbing his eyes in disbelief during one of the most incredible season debuts on record.

Oct. 14, 1965: Interviewing Koufax after Game 7

"Sandy, in Los Angeles, when you pitched your 7-0 shutout, you were quoted as saying after the game, 'I feel 100 years old.' So today, how do you feel?"

The final call of Sandy Koufax's incredible complete-game victory to win the 1965 World Series was made by Twins announcer Ray Scott, while Scully handled the first five innings and postgame duties. This interview with a clearly spent Koufax in the jubilant clubhouse highlights not just the greatness of both men, but their enduring friendship.

June 29, 1990: Fernando's no-hitter

"If you have a sombrero, throw it to the sky!"

In the midst of all the joy at Dodger Stadium, Scully made sure to reference the beloved Valenzuela's native Mexico with this celebratory cry. The spontaneity of the gesture is what makes it so beautiful.

June 18, 2014: Kershaw's no-hitter

"And there is one out to go. One miserable, measly out."

Just think: Scully called an unprecedented 23 no-hitters, and somehow he found ways to make each one unique. This game call is special because you can sense how much he's truly enjoying watching Kershaw work.

Sept. 11, 1983: The Squeeze

"There isn't any way I could improve on the picture."

A walk-off squeeze play is so rare it'll even get Scully exploding in delight - and yet, he stays perfectly calm throughout. The epitome of professionalism.

July 6, 1983: All-Star grand slam

"And there it is, the first grand slam in All-Star history!"

Skip to the 11:13 mark to see Lynn's full at-bat. Once it's out of the park, nothing more needs to be said, as Scully lets the intensity of the notoriously loud Comiskey Park make your television shake.

April 25, 1976: Rick Monday saves the flag

"I think that guy was gonna set fire to the American flag! Can you believe that?"

Monday, now a Dodgers radio broadcaster, was a member of the Cubs when he grabbed a flag about to be burned by protesters at Dodger Stadium. Scully's vivid description on radio gave the heroic moment life, and you can see his face turning red with anger as he describes the scene. His radio-only call was synced to video of the incident that was discovered several years later.

Oct. 23, 1993: Joe Carter's home run

"This crowd has hollered itself weak."

Tom Cheek's words on Toronto radio remain the most iconic version, but Scully's rarely heard national radio call is a master class in how to use the crowd to paint a picture.

July 11, 1989: The All-Star Game with the president

"Bo Jackson says hello!"

Scully effortlessly calls back-to-back home runs in the 1989 All-Star Game while sharing the booth with former president (and Cubs announcer) Ronald Reagan.

June 6, 2013: Puig's 1st grand slam

"I have learned over the years that there is a rare and precious moment where there is nothing better than silence."

Yasiel Puig's performance in his fourth big-league game left Scully without words for a full 90 seconds. That's when we knew Puig-mania had taken hold of Los Angeles.

Oct. 16, 1985: Jack Clark's NLCS-clinching homer

"It is Jack Clark and Tom Niedenfuer going head to head ... one way or another, what a way to end."

Proving once again that he's never a "homer" announcer, Scully's call of Jack Clark's three-run NLCS-clinching homer at Dodger Stadium on national TV is balanced and down the middle, despite the fact his primary employer was just eliminated.

Sept. 29, 2013: Todd Helton's final at-bat

"The game is meaningless. Who's rooting against him right now?"

This call demonstrates why Scully is so beloved by players everywhere. Though Helton crushed Dodgers pitching for years, Scully gives him the royal treatment in his last at-bat and turns us into Rockies fans for two minutes. When the ending goes off script we can feel Vin's disappointment.

Oct. 3, 1993: Piazza sinks the Giants

"Miracle upon miracles, he's hit another one!"

Scully's seen just about everything in the Dodgers-Giants rivalry, but even this one caught him off guard. The Dodgers, going nowhere, eliminated the 103-win Giants thanks to rookie catcher Mike Piazza's two-homer day that left Dodger Stadium shaking and had Scully shaking his head in astonishment.

Oct. 27, 1991: Twins win World Series

"You can taste the pressure here in the dome."

In perhaps the greatest World Series game ever played, Scully's radio call of Gene Larkin's winning single goes from stomach-churning to spine-tingling in seconds.

Oct. 2, 2004: Finley's division-clinching slam

"Wherever it goes, the Dodgers have won!"

The beauty of every Dodgers-Giants moment called by Scully is his demeanor, which never changes in the face of a historic moment like this one.

Sept. 17, 1996: Nomo's no-no

"Hideo Nomo has done what they said could not be done!"

Scully understands how remarkable Nomo's feat was, not just as a Japanese baseball pioneer, but also because he threw the no-hitter in Colorado. He works it all into his call seamlessly.

Sept. 29, 1959: Dodgers win first pennant in L.A.

"Hodges scores, we go to Chicago!"

Only Scully could keep the call of a 12th-inning pennant-clinching walk-off so simple and elegant amid the excitement of 90,000 rabid fans.

May 31, 1968: Drysdale's streak extended

"It hit the bat, said Wendelstedt!"

Don Drysdale's then-record scoreless streak was extended thanks to a dubious call that had the rival Giants going bonkers on the field, and Scully captures the chaos perfectly.

Sept. 5, 1987: The broken-bat home run

"That ought to go in the trophy case, pal!"

You've never seen a broken-bat home run, and neither has Scully, who simply can't believe how the Angels' Jack Howell managed to pull this off.

Sept. 25, 2016: One last walk-off

"... and would you believe, his first home run of the year!"

Fittingly, the Dodgers gave Scully one last magical walk-off call in his final Dodger Stadium broadcast - and, naturally, he made it special by simply being himself on the microphone. Here's the entire final half-inning from Sunday's game, and Scully's heartfelt speech to the fans afterward.

Oct. 4, 1955: Brooklyn gets its title

"Ladies and gentlemen, the Brooklyn Dodgers are the champions of the world."

Unfortunately only Mel Allen's call of Brooklyn finally beating the Yankees is available, but Scully's simple pronouncement remains the definitive version. Here, in an interview from earlier this year, Scully reveals just how much that call and the moment itself still mean to him.

Oct. 25, 1986: Buckner's boot

"If one picture is worth a thousand words, you have seen about a million words."

The entire 10th inning of Game 6 is, of course, a scene to remember, and Scully guides us through the madness with ease. As you stare into Shea Stadium and ask yourself "What just happened?" on your couch, Scully's silent for three minutes - and that, right there, is your answer: He doesn't know either.

April 8, 1974: Aaron passes Ruth

"What a marvelous moment for the country and the world. A black man is getting a standing ovation in the deep south."

Scully's use of the crowd on this radio call of Hank Aaron's 715th home run is musical. He told Colin Cowherd recently that after the home run, he left his chair, "went to the back of the booth, and poured a little water," allowing the crowd to speak for several minutes. When he returns, he describes the social significance of this moment before painting the on-field picture - and every word he said was unscripted. Forty-two years later, Scully's interpretation continues to resonate far beyond the field of play: During an appearance on "The Rich Eisen Show" earlier this month, Scully called this his "most important" call.

Oct. 15, 1988: Kirk Gibson's homer

"In a year that has been so improbable, the impossible has happened!"

Listen before the moment itself as Scully builds the scene and tension for us during Mike Davis' at-bat, then lets the crowd introduce Gibson, all while seamlessly working in partner Joe Garagiola. Once Gibson homers, you can almost feel the normally stoic Scully jumping out of his chair - a true rarity for him - before the crowd and his immortal words take us home. Scully's doing the TV broadcast, but he's calling much of this like he's on the radio, and that makes it all the more magical.

Sept. 9, 1965: Koufax's perfect game

"On the scoreboard in right field it is 9:46 p.m., in the City of the Angels​ ..."

The greatest game ever pitched, by perhaps the greatest left-hander, called by the greatest broadcaster. Push play, close your eyes, and let Vin Scully take you to the ninth inning at Dodger Stadium on September the ninth, nineteen-hundred and sixty-five. Then, for a different perspective, read the incredible transcript of his poetic call.

(Videos courtesy: MLB.com)

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox