Dick Enberg, who has been the voice of the San Diego Padres for the last six years, will retire at the end of the 2016 season.
The 80-year-old Enberg, considered a professional’s professional, made the announcement during last night’s broadcast.
“In culminating 60 years of sports broadcasting, it has been a tremendous thrill to be the TV voice of my hometown San Diego Padres, and I’m tremendously excited that I will have a continuing TV role through the 2016 season, an All-Star Game year for San Diego,” said Enberg. “Our family is sincerely grateful to Padres ownership, Ron Fowler and Peter and Tom Seidler, and CEO Mike Dee for providing the opportunity for an extension through 2016. While I have decided that 2016 will be my last as the primary play-by-play announcer, I will always be a Padre, and look forward to a continuing role. Ultimately, with high hopes I’ll be one of the many in line that will someday soon embrace a World Series championship in San Diego.”
In July, Enberg received the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2015 Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasting excellence, making him one of only two individuals to have earned entry into each of the Baseball, Football (Rozelle Award) and Basketball (Gowdy Award) Halls of Fame. He began his full-time broadcasting career in 1965 in Los Angeles as the radio and television voice of the California Angels, UCLA basketball and the Los Angeles Rams, and was named California Sportscaster of the Year on four occasions.
“Inarguably, Dick is the greatest storyteller the sports world has ever known, and we have been fortunate to have heard his legendary voice and signature calls on our Padres telecasts since 2010,” said Padres President and CEO Mike Dee. “We look forward to his return in 2016, and know that after seven seasons in the booth at Petco Park, Dick will forever be part of the Padres family.”