Yankee legend Rizzuto leaves fond memories
NEW YORK — To fellow Hall of Famers, Phil Rizzuto was a guy who could put down a squeeze bunt, handle a tricky hop or make a nifty hook slide.
To a generation of fans who never saw "The Scooter" play a single inning, he became famous for something else — "Holy cow!"
Part of the New York Yankees family for more than a half-century, Rizzuto died Monday night at 89. The team will wear his retired No. 10 on its left sleeves for the rest of the season.
"I guess heaven must have needed a shortstop," Yankees owner George Steinbrenner said in a statement. "He epitomized the Yankee spirit — gritty and hard charging — and he wore the pinstripes proudly."
A staple during the Yankees dynasty in the 1940s and 1950s, Rizzuto became a beloved broadcaster doing their games for four decades.
While many announcers spouted statistics, Rizzuto told stories. He delighted television and radio listeners by spinning yarns about his fear of lightning, his favorite place to get a cannoli and the prospect of outfielder Dave Winfield as a candidate for president.
His voice dripping with his native Brooklyn, Rizzuto liked to acknowledge birthdays and anniversaries, read notes from fans and send messages to old cronies. Once he noticed old teammate Bobby Brown — then the American League president — sitting in a box seat and hollered down, trying to get his attention.
"He would keep getting in trouble with WPIX for announcing birthdays and anniversaries," daughter Patricia Rizzuto recalled Tuesday.
If Rizzuto missed a play, he would merely scribble "ww" in his scorecard box score. That, he said, meant "wasn't watching."
His fans and colleagues never minded. Because by simply saying "Hey, White!" to longtime broadcasting partner Bill White, it was time for another tale.
"He didn't try to act like an announcer," Hall of Fame teammate Whitey Ford said. "He just said what he thought. It added fun to the game."
And, Rizzuto never strayed too far from his catch-phrase — the same one that Harry Caray popularized in St. Louis and Chicago.
Rizzuto used it all sorts of ways, depending on what he was describing. He shouted "Holy cow!" when he called Roger Maris' record-breaking 61st home run, but he also employed it to express disbelief or acknowledgment.
For players who bothered him, however, it was always, "What a huckleberry!"
"Phil was a unique figure who exemplified the joy of our game to millions of fans," commissioner Bud Selig said.
In the New York area, Rizzuto's antics became a staple for TV ads. Nonbaseball fans got to know him, too, hearing his voice on Meat Loaf's rock hit "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" and watching Billy Crystal's imitations.
Rizzuto had been in declining health for several years. He had pneumonia and died in his sleep at a nursing home in West Orange, N.J..
