At the Los Angeles Dodgers’ home opener on Tuesday the organization honored legendary broadcaster Vin Scully with a touching ceremony on the field before the game, as he is in his 67th and final season.
Along with a video tribute being played, many Dodger greats including Al Downing, Sandy Koufax, Maury Wills, Don Newcombe, Steve Garvey, Ron Cey, Fernando Valenzuela and Orel Hershiser played a role in the touching ceremony.
Given that it was held after player introductions, the Arizona Diamondbacks were in the dugout as the festivities unfolded. Although Scully is very much synonymous with the Dodgers organization, he’s revered by other clubs and their fans.
Among them is Diamondbacks Paul Goldschmidt, who was selected by the Dodgers in the 49th round of the 2006 draft. He did not sign and attended Texas State University. Goldschmidt was then drafted by the Diamondbacks in the eighth round in 2009.
The talented first baseman enjoyed the seat he had as Scully and the aforementioned group of players were on the field, according to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times:
“To have all those legends out there, with the history they have here at Dodger Stadium, and with all their players, that was awesome,” Goldschmidt said. “It was fun to be a witness to that.”
Goldschmidt has enjoyed plenty of success against the Dodgers during his career. Entering Wednesday, he’s faced Los Angeles in 77 games, and is batting .338/402/.625 with 101 hits — 20 of which are doubles and 22 are home runs — to go along with 65 RBIs.
Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale had a similar feeling as his first baseman when watching the ceremony, citing the Dodgers’ rich history and respectful nature:
“That showed me they have respect for the game. That’s one thing we try to teach here,” Hale said. “If you can’t be out there to celebrate a guy like Vin Scully …”
Hale’s voice trailed off, as if he realized he did not need to complete the sentence.
“That’s the history of baseball,” he said. “We have these newfangled uniforms — they’re funky — because we don’t have a history like they have here. You have to respect that.”
The uniforms Hale is referring to are the seven new options the Diamondbacks introduced during the offseason. They were the grey and teal version on Tuesday, which drew plenty of criticism on social media.
While Tuesday’s ceremony focused on celebrating Scully’s career, there are more honors to come throughout the course of this season.
