Sportcaster Dick Enberg Wins MLB HOF Award

Dick Enberg

In his own words, Dick Enberg reached the pinnacle of his iconic career on Wednesday, as the current television voice of the Padres was named the 2015 winner of the Ford C. Frick Award by the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Enberg will be inducted into the broadcasters’ wing on July 25 in Cooperstown, N.Y.

“When I received the call this morning,” Enberg told UTSanDiego.com, “it took me to my knees. Baseball is part of my DNA.”

Enberg, who will turn 80 on Jan. 9, was selected from a group of 10 finalists; the others were Richie Ashburn, Billy Berroa, Rene Cardenas, Dizzy Dean, Ernie Johnson Sr., Ralph Kiner, Ned Martin, Joe Nuxhall and Jack Quinlan.

The Hall of Fame annually presents the Frick Award for excellence in baseball broadcasting.

“Dick Enberg’s unmistakable voice and remarkable enthusiasm for the National Pastime during the Living Room Era as voice of the California Angels from 1968-78 propelled his broadcast career in to the national limelight, as his baseball foundation became a launching pad for other sports and national assignments,” Jeff Idelson, President of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, said in a statement.

“In the years since, his assignments with NBC Sports and now the San Diego Padres, his passion for the games – and for the fans who follow them through his friendly-and-ardent style – have made him one of sport’s most recognizable voices.”