Over a span of less than 24 hours Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully went from what was arguably one of the most joyful and memorable days of his life to what was unquestionably one of his worst.

After receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Tuesday afternoon at the White House, the 88-year-old recently-retired broadcaster awoke on Wednesday morning to the news that his dear friend and former Brooklyn Dodger Ralph Branca had died at the age of 90.

“I was closer to Ralph than to any other Dodger,” Scully said, after hearing the news. “We traveled around the world and became very good friends. He carried the cross of the Thomson home run with dignity and grace. I was grateful for his friendship and I grieve at his death. He was a great man.”

It is impossible to imagine the anguish that Ralph Branca went through after giving up the shot heard ’round the world to Bobby Thompson, but Scully said that his friend carried the cross “with dignity and grace.”
(AP photo)

Scully isn’t the only member of the Brooklyn Dodgers family pained by Branca’s passing, so too is Dodgers Hall of Fame manager and former Brooklyn Dodger Tommy Lasorda.

“Branca to me was a hero. I admired him so much,” said Lasorda. “Ralph and I became very close, my family and his family. I always enjoyed being around him. He was a tough one in every way and I really admired him.”

Even though he didn’t know Branca on the same level as Scully and Lasorda, Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten expressed the feelings shared by the entire Dodgers organization over Branca’s passing.

“Ralph Branca was a New York native who made his debut as a teenager during World War II and soon became one of the top pitchers for the Brooklyn Dodgers,” Kasten said. “In 1947, he embraced and welcomed a Dodger rookie named Jackie Robinson, displaying the warmth and dignity that defined his entire life. The Dodger organization has always treasured Ralph and will greatly miss him, and sends condolences to his wife Ann and their family.”

Branca was the last surviving member of the 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers, the team on which Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier. And though there was no mention of Branca in the Dodgers 2017 promotional schedule released on Tuesday, one has to believe that the organization will schedule something to honor the extremely popular former Brooklyn Dodger.