Vin Scully 'Embarrassed' To Be Focus of Dodgers' TV Negotiations

Vin Scully

As the Dodgers and Time Warner Cable invoked the name of Vin Scully in lobbying DirecTV to carry SportsNet LA, the Hall of Fame broadcaster said Wednesday he was not entirely comfortable "to have my name tossed into a negotiation.”

Said Scully: “I’m pretty shy with that kind of stuff.”

The beloved Scully, 88, is entering his 67th and final season as voice of the Dodgers. A TWC spokesman said Tuesday that the company had cut its asking price for the Dodgers-owned channel "especially because of the historic nature of this year, with it being Vin Scully’s final season.”

Said Scully: “It’s really kind of embarrassing for me. If it will serve in any possible way to get the fans to see more games, that is the thing I would be rooting for.”

According to The LA Times, Scully is famously averse to controversy. However, on Wednesday, the president of the Dodgers and the commissioner of Major League Baseball invoked Scully’s name in urging DirecTV and other providers to accept the TWC deal.

“It’s a humbling feeling that they would even try because of me,” Scully said.

Dodgers President Stan Kasten saluted the TWC offer to lower the cost of the Dodgers’ channel. “We think it’s a wonderful gesture from Time Warner Cable, particularly out of respect for Vin Scully,” Kasten said. “It’s a big win for the fans and, frankly, a big win for the cable and satellite providers. There could be no better way to honor Vin in his final year than for them to quickly accept this offer and get the games on TV.”

Commissioner Rob Manfred issued this statement: “The distribution dispute involving DirecTV, AT&T, COX and Verizon has gone on too long. The Dodgers’ massive fan base deserves to be able to watch Dodger games regardless of their choice of provider. The situation is particularly acute given that this is Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully’s final season. Time Warner has made a significant economic move that I hope will be accepted by the providers.”

On Tuesday, Time Warner Cable said it was cutting its asking price for SportsNet LA — which telecasts Dodger games — by 30% in an effort to persuade cable and satellite providers to pick up the channel.

Pay-TV providers don't seem to be buying it, according to The LA Times, DirecTV/AT&T and Verizon declined to comment. Cox Communications said Tuesday it hopes to reach an agreement with Time Warner that does not "burden our customers with excessive price increases."

Analysts say the holdouts are unlikely to take the discounted offer, for several reasons.

Carrying the Dodgers channel would still cost the providers about $3.50 a month per household, an expense they would have to absorb or pass on to customers. In an era of cord-cutting, any rate increase could be incentive for customers to cancel their pay-TV service.

Initially offered at about $4.90 per month, SportsNet LA was the second-most-expensive local sports channel in the country, according consulting firm SNL Kagan.