Dick Enberg, one of the greatest sports broadcasters in television history, has passed away at the age of 82.
The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Enberg’s wife said he failed to get off of a flight in Boston to meet her. He was found at home “dressed with his bags packed at the door,” and appears to have had a heart attack.
Enberg’s catch phrase was “Oh my!”
When Magic Johnson and Larry Bird faced off in the famous 1979 NCAA Basketball title game, it was Enberg who called it with basketball broadcast legends Al McGuire and Billy Packer.
Enberg was the epitome of class and versatility from an era when sports broadcasters didn’t inject themselves into the story. The broadcast landscape today is plagued with people like Bob Costas, who for years now has been more interested in sharing his political opinions than his knowledge of sports.
Over the years he broadcast football, basketball, and Wimbledon, but he always admitted that baseball was his first love. He finished his stellar, Broadcast Hall of Fame career in the booth calling games for the San Diego Padres. His last game was on the same day as that of Los Angeles Dodgers legend Vin Scully.
Enberg’s wife Barbara told the Union-Tribune that she’s “still in shock.”
Here is a tribute that Fox Sports San Diego aired when Enberg retired:
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